Dial-a-Ride (3)

Neil Garratt: In one case, four Dial-a-Ride buses were provided for one week and the next week none at all. Why is there no consistent system in place?

The Mayor: Dial-a-Ride would be happy to look into any specific query that relates to a particular club or location. Please contact Transport for London’s Government Relations team directly with the details.

Dial-a-Ride (2)

Neil Garratt: Why have so many individual journey requests to attend these reopened clubs via the online booking system been routinely rejected by TfL agents?

The Mayor: Dial-a-Ride is currently operating above its performance targets, with 97 per cent of customers’ individual journey requests, which include those to attend clubs and activities, being accommodated in the year to date.

Dial-a-Ride (1)

Neil Garratt: Why is TfL refusing requests by clubs & societies to restore their regular Dial-a-Ride pick-up services?

The Mayor: Dial-a-Ride is a service offered to individual older and disabled Londoners as part of a suite of assisted transport options for those who need additional help getting out and about; it has never offered a service direct to clubs or societies. Individual members make requests for journeys, which Dial-a-Ride accommodates on a first-come first-served basis as resources allow. Travel to clubs and activities only forms 20 per cent of journeys provided by Dial-a-Ride.
At the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, the clubs and activities that Dial-a-Ride members had been travelling to were closed and have only recently begun to reopen. Demand from Dial-a-Ride customers to travel to these locations has now changed, and so it has not been possible, for reasons of scheduling efficiency, to simply restore the previous arrangements.
Individual members who wish to travel to a club or other activity are able to do so by making a request for the journey in the usual way. Where a regular pattern of such requests is subsequently identified, a regular arrangement may be offered. This process has been put in place to best respond to the new demand patterns that Dial-a-Ride is now catering for.

Flood Response Capability (5)

Anne Clarke: The London Safety Plan says, “London Fire Brigade will: Use community safety activities to assist with flood awareness, preparation and to raise awareness of the hazards associated with flood recovery activities”. Can you provide details of the activities that are undertaken and how they raise awareness?

The Mayor: London Fire Brigade (LFB) has updated and enhanced the advice to residents on its website to include guidance on flooding and signpost residents to available resources. This includes guidance on ‘Flood Planning’, ‘What to do if a flood is predicted in your area’, ‘What to do if your home if flooding’ and ‘What to do in the aftermath of a flood.’ LFB will target this information to businesses in London through a communications campaign in the coming months. LFB works in partnership with a number or organisations to promote awareness of water safety and flooding and is a lead member of the Thames Water Safety Partnership along with the Port of London Authority and RNLI.

Access to Capital

Neil Garratt: What actions are you taking to improve access to capital for start-ups across London?

The Mayor: The London Business Hub provides support, guidance as well as running events and programmes to help businesses navigate the business support landscape. City Hall also provides business support programmes to build the capacity of SMEs to enable them to be better prepared to be able access finance.
My Investment Readiness Programme is an example of this and specifically targets early-stage founders to access external finance. The programme focusses on demystifying funding opportunities and helps SMEs to navigate this process.
In addition to this, the London Business Hub portal brings together support, advice and guidance from all across London. It provides materials, such as blogs and case studies, to inform SMEs of the finance options available to them, such as this. We also work closely with our partners and stakeholders to ensure we promote their grants schemes, as well as other sources of finance, to SMEs.
This includes Start Up Loans as well as our own Greater London Investment Fund: https://glif.co/

Licensing

Neil Garratt: What work are you undertaking to improve licensing arrangements across London to support London’s recovery?

The Mayor: My Culture Strategy and Police and Crime Plan set out my commitment to supporting more consistent licensing practice across the capital, which will support London’s recovery from the pandemic.
I am commissioning research to identify business friendly licensing policies and practices that already exist. I am also funding pilot activity which will trial new and innovative ways of working that will support regulators and businesses to work collaboratively to support high street recovery. This will also support the implementation of London Councils’ Pledges for Business.
My Licensing and Regulation Coordination Group meet every three weeks to work on the safe reopening of our high streets, venues and public realm. These meetings include the Met Police, borough licensing and regulation officers and businesses. They provide a supportive forum for sharing information, planning pro-active interventions, encouraging pop-up activity and the consideration of new and emerging issues.

Creative Enterprise Zones

Neil Garratt: How will you be measuring the outcomes of the three new Creative Enterprise zones?

The Mayor: My Creative Enterprise Zones are creating new affordable workspace, delivering pathways to employment, improving skills, and ensuring local communities’ benefit.
My existing six zones are on track to deliver are on track to deliver over 40,000 sqm of new, permanent, affordable creative workspace. Since the start of the pandemic, Creative Enterprise Zones have supported over 300 cultural organisations and businesses, helped to protect over 1,000 sector jobs and generated an additional £2 million in recovery support.
I have invested £2.2 million skills funding in Creative Enterprise Zones to improve career prospects for over 650 Londoners. At least 50 per cent will be from Black, Asian and minority ethnic groups and 50 per cent will be women.
New accredited zones will each deliver against a specific action plan setting out how they will provide and create affordable creative space, community engagement, skills and business support and creating and embedding policy. Action plans will be monitored annually.

Dial-a-Ride (4)

Neil Garratt: When will normal Dial-a-Ride services be restored?

The Mayor: Dial-a-Ride is operating in response to customer demand, which at present stands at just over 40 per cent of pre-Covid demand and exhibits different patterns of use to those that were experienced before the pandemic. The service will continue to be reviewed and adapted in response to the changing requirements of its customers, which may not be best served by fully returning to previous ways of working.

Flooding (2)

Anne Clarke: How many London businesses are currently at risk from fluvial and tidal flooding? Please provide the data in the same format as in 2016/1441.

The Mayor: The table below provides the number of non-residential properties currently at risk of tidal and fluvial flooding in London. This is not directly correlated to number of businesses as the classification includes a broad range of premises. Actual numbers will change regularly, e.g. as new development is constructed and new flood defences are constructed. Due to the short timeframe for responding the Environment Agency has not been able to provide the data in the same format as 2016/1441.I have asked the Environment Agency to provide the information in the same format as soon as possible.

Investment in SuDS London

Anne Clarke: You have said that “Officers are working with partners to estimate what investment in SuDS London requires to fully manage surface water flood risk. This new evidence will allow us to lobby Government for further funding”. Can you provide details on what level of investment is required and what lobbying of Government has taken place?

The Mayor: As part of the strategic SuDS pilot my officers have worked with the Thames Regional Flood and Coastal committee, Environment Agency, Thames Water, six boroughs and other key stakeholders to explore how to better quantify the benefits of widespread strategically located sustainable drainage across London to manage flood risk and create new green infrastructure that can unlock further match funding. That study demonstrated that delivering a 1% annual reduction in properties at risk of high surface water flooding in London requires £20 million of investment and unlocks £280m of flooding and nature benefits per year.
In total we estimate that over £1 billion of investment is needed to address priority areas to mitigate flood risk. Not every location in the public realm is suitable for SuDS, this funding would target the top 5% most effective (optimised) locations which provides over 60% of the flood risk reduction benefit..
I wrote to Rt Hon George Eustice MP, Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, last month, making the case for funding to manage the growing surface water flood risk in London and the need to improve evidence to support strategic SuDS delivery as outlined above.

Waking Watches and London’s Boroughs

Anne Clarke: Please provide a borough-by-borough breakdown of the number of buildings operating waking watches in London. Please also breakdown the numbers for buildings over 18m and under 18m in each borough.

The Mayor: London Fire Brigade (LFB) collects data for buildings with a temporary suspension of ‘stay put’ where an interim simultaneous evacuation strategy has been put in place. This includes, but is not limited to, waking watches, which the National Fire Chiefs Council guidance defines as a system where ‘suitably trained persons continually patrol all floors and the exterior perimeter of the building in order to detect a fire, raise the alarm, and carry out the role of evacuation management’.Residential buildings with an interim simultaneous evacuation strategy in place could have personnel on site or a remote monitoring system, but this is determined by the Responsible Person with guidancefroma competent fire safety professional.
The figures can changeon a daily basiswhen interim measures are required, or a building is remediated and no longer requires the interim measures. The number of buildings where an interim simultaneous evacuation strategy has been put in place, asof15 September 2021, are presented by borough and by height in the table below.
Local Authority
Total blocks
Over 18 metres
Under 18 metres
Barking and Dagenham
18
14
4
Barnet
20
16
4
Bexley
3
3
0
Brent
44
29
15
Bromley
3
2
1
Camden
37
32
5
City of London
10
10
0
Croydon
41
25
16
Ealing
16
9
7
Enfield
4
2
2
Greenwich
71
62
9
Hackney
86
65
21
Hammersmith and Fulham
15
13
2
Haringey
14
8
6
Harrow
8
7
1
Havering
8
8
0
Hillingdon
16
9
7
Hounslow
25
18
7
Islington
55
31
24
Kensington and Chelsea
27
18
9
Kingston upon Thames
4
4
0
Lambeth
66
50
16
Lewisham
57
40
17
Merton
5
3
2
Newham
66
62
4
Redbridge
12
10
2
Richmond
0
0
0
Southwark
71
54
17
Sutton
6
6
0
Tower Hamlets
162
152
10
Waltham Forest
20
20
0
Wandsworth
31
27
4
Westminster
32
30
2
Total
1053
839
214

Strategic Flood Response Framework

Anne Clarke: What plans, if any, are there to review the framework, given the last update to it was in January 2020?

The Mayor: All of the plans and frameworks produced by the London Resilience Partnership have a target review period of three years unless there are significant changes to guidance or learning from incidents that requires a more urgent review. The lead agency for the Strategic Flood Framework, the Environment Agency, continue to monitor any lessons and necessity to conduct a more urgent review. With the impact of COVID and demands of the response upon resilience practitioners it is likely that a number of framework reviews will be delayed in the current three year period and it is anticipated that the Flood framework will be revised in early to mid-2022, a year ahead of schedule, and will incorporate the work to make improvements identified to the response through the Round Table discussions I convened following the flooding this July.

Flood Response Capability (9)

Anne Clarke: The London Safety Plan says, “London Fire Brigade will extend the services it offers to London to include prevention and recovery activities alongside an increased flood rescue response”. Can you provide details on what services have been extended since March 2017?

The Mayor: Since March 2017, new resource packs are now available on all London Fire Brigade’s (LFB) Operational Support Units for damage control, salvage and environmental response to assist recovery activities. This is in addition to 500 metres of flood barriers, 142 ejector pumps, and 250 additional sets of flood rescue Personal Protective Equipment for frontline crews.
LFB is also trialling a surface water casting tool at its Control centre to enable pre-planned movements of vehicles and equipment to expected surface water flooding events. The latest update of the London Emergency Services Liaison Panel (LESLP) includes reference to LFB’s new flood capabilities, bringing a wider understanding of the Brigade’s capabilities amongst London’s blue light response services.

London Music Board

Zack Polanski: In light of the coronavirus pandemic, would you consider bringing the London Music Board back in order to help the London music scene recover from the pandemic?

The Mayor: The London Music Board was set up to implement the Rescue Plan for Grassroots Music Venues. This included tackling the steep decline in grassroots venues, appointing a Night Czar, implementing Agent of Change and improving licensing. The Board successfully delivered its objectives, including stabilising the decline of grassroots venues.
I have strong links with the music industry and continue to work closely with it on London’s recovery.
For example, I set up the Safer Sounds Partnership to support London’s live music scene and promote partnership working between industry and the police after the scrapping of the controversial Form 696 risk assessment process.
And I worked closely with Music Venue Trust at the start of the pandemic to identify the scale of the crisis facing grassroots music venues and to support them with £450,000 from my Culture at Risk Business Support Fund. No grassroots music venues have so far been lost in London due to the pandemic.

Outdoor dining

Zack Polanski: What more can you do to support councils to enable more outdoor dining as we enter autumn and winter?

The Mayor: Al fresco dining has been a lifeline for many businesses during the pandemic and will continue to play an important role in the hospitality sector’s recovery.
Guidance I have published on the London Business Hub provides information on how businesses can adapt outdoor dining schemes for the colder, wetter months. The guidance also gives suggestions on outdoor heating and how to minimise the impact on the environment.
I encourage all boroughs to work in partnership to create al fresco dining schemes that support businesses while considering the needs and wishes of local residents. Where there is support for outdoor dining schemes then I hope councils will find a way to make them a permanent addition to London’s high streets.
My Night Czar is supporting boroughs to plan for better access to high street activity around the clock through the Night Time Borough Champions Network.

Empty shops in London

Siân Berry: What data do you collect on the number of empty retail outlets and shops across London?

The Mayor: The GLA purchases an annual snapshot of retail premises and use type from the Local Data Company. This is observed data, collected by their surveyors walking up and down high streets, and one of the categories is ‘vacant’.
The GLA has snapshots dating back to 2013 and is therefore able to look at areas with persistent vacancies or high levels of ‘churn’ before the pandemic.
In November 2018, 8.5 per cent of London retail premises were recorded as vacant, and in November 2019, 9 per cent of retail premises were recorded as vacant.
The most recent figures for February 2021 showed 10 per cent of retail premises were recorded as vacant.
However, this figure varies widely across London, with certain high streets (and certain parts of high streets) showing much higher percentages of vacant shops. The pattern across London is complicated and often varies even within the same borough.
The picture is further complicated by temporary closures, some businesses not being allowed to open during the pandemic, and some waiting for footfall to increase before reopening.
The next snapshot will be taken November 2021. We are developing further mechanisms to share data and insights with boroughs, through the High Streets Recovery Mission, which will provide an additional source in future years.

COVID Job Retention Scheme

Marina Ahmad: Do you know how many Londoners were still on the COVID Job Retention Scheme when it came to an end on the 30 September 2021?

The Mayor: The latest London-level figures for the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) come from HMRC’s official statistics and show that there were 263,100 Londoners on furlough on 31 August 2021, down from 299,200 on 31 July.
The latest figures, which should be considered provisional, are based on analysis of claims for support for periods up to 31 August 2021. As you note, the furlough scheme subsequently ended on 30 September 2021, but official statistics contain no information relating to the period at the end of the scheme as yet.
The next release of CRJS official statistics, covering those on furlough in September 2021, is due to be published on 4 November 2021.

COVID recovery visa

Marina Ahmad: What response, if any, have you received from the Government to your suggestion of a COVID recovery visa and devolved powers in this area?

The Mayor: I have not received a response. The Government has since introduced a capped short term visa to allow overseas HGV drivers to work in the UK in the run up to Christmas. However, the scheme has had very limited take up so far. It is clear that much more will be needed to address the scale of the challenge.
That is why I will continue urging ministers to bring in a Covid Recovery Visa that will help businesses in sectors like hospitality, construction and haulage that are struggling with shortages of workers.
It is crucial that businesses are able to maintain critical services as the economy reopens and are given time to train UK workers in hard-to-fill vacancies. In the longer-term we need a regional shortage occupation list that allows London and other cities to attract and retain staff in sectors with acute labour shortages.

London Tech Week 2021

Marina Ahmad: How have you supported London Tech Week this year (2021)?

The Mayor: I attended and gave the welcome address at London Tech Week’s ‘Future of Work Summit’ at Samsung KX, Coal Drops Yard, on Wednesday 22 September 2021, where I launched London’s Emerging Technology Charter, the first of its kind in any UK city.
My Deputy Mayor for Business, Rajesh Agrawal attended and gave the welcome speech at the London Tech Week’s ‘Global Leaders Innovation Summit’, on Monday 20 September, 2021 and delivered the keynote speech at London Tech Week’s ‘Elevating Founders’ event on Thursday 23 September 2021.
My Deputy Mayor for the Environment and Energy, Shirley Rodrigues, took part in a fireside chat on green technology for ‘ClimateTech’ at London Tech Week on Tuesday 21 September.
London & Partners, which co-founded London Tech Week in 2012, supported London Tech Week through dedicated business events as well as promotional activity publicising London as a leading international hub to set up a tech company, which generated 179 pieces of media coverage across 25 countries including with global outlets such as Reuters, Times of India and Business Insider.

Energy prices (4)

Marina Ahmad: What impact, if any, will the increase in gas prices have on London Power?

The Mayor: London Power was set up as a white label partnership with an existing energy supplier, Octopus Energy, as we believed it would be less risky, less costly and faster to set up this way. Current events have shown the risks associated with setting up as a stand-alone licensed supplier.
I have confidence in our partner as a financially stable energy company with a prudent hedging strategy. They have recently gained further outside investment and were selected by Ofgem to take on 580,000 customers from failed energy supplier Avro Energy, further demonstrating confidence and due diligence from third parties.
Current fixed term quotes for new customers are hundreds of pounds above price-capped variable tariffs across the industry, with switching websites advising customers to stay with their current supplier. This will impact switching rates and customer acquisition across the industry this winter, which are expected to be at record low levels.

Energy prices (3)

Marina Ahmad: How can low income Londoners, and those most affected by increasing gas prices be supported to avoid having to choose between eating and heating this winter?

The Mayor: My Warmer Homes Advice Service stands ready to support low income Londoners concerned about their energy bills. Services on offer include tailored advice on saving energy, support with making applications to my Warmer Homes programme (for grant support), support and advice on fuel debt, and help with accessing the Warm Home Discount. I would advise all low income Londoners to contact their energy supplier to see if they are eligible for this £140 Warm Home Discount. In November I will reopen my Warmer Homes programme, providing grants of up to £5,500 for low income households requiring energy efficiency improvements. Alongside this, my Advice in Community Settings Programme is funding 11 partnerships starting in October between advice providers and community locations to help people experiencing financial hardship access advice where and when they need it.

Energy prices (2)

Marina Ahmad: What representations have you made to the Government on behalf of Londoners regarding the increase in gas prices?

The Mayor: Energy costs are going up for many Londoners as as wholesale energy prices have hit record highs and some energy suppliers have failed. I recently met the Energy Secretary to set out my concerns about the current crisis and to note that I support the energy price cap, which protects Londoners from the current high market prices. However, gas prices have just increased by a further 12 per cent in October for many Londoners, just as demand for heating increases. Prices are expected to rise even further next April. This will make the problem of fuel poverty more acute so I’d like to see Government help fight this by doing the following: devolving Energy Company Obligation funding to London, so London gets its fair share; providing longer-term assurance on grant funding for retrofit; providing clarity on Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards, as London has a large private rented sector; and retaining the Universal Credit uplift.

Earls Court air pollution

Zack Polanski: Given the Mayor’s initiative for London as the world’s first National Park City, why is the Earls Court Masterplan site not greened on a temporary basis before works start? According to Friends of the Earth, Earls Court has some of the worst air pollution in the country and we are living in a climate emergency. Although part of the site in Hammersmith and Fulham is currently being used for meanwhile use, that still leaves approximately 22 acres of wasteland which could be green with no need for the ground to be broken.

The Mayor: I am very proud that in July 2019 the National Park City Foundation confirmed London as the world’s first National Park City. A London National Park City aims to encourage more people to enjoy the great outdoors and to support all Londoners in making the city greener, healthier and wilder. How a site is utilised pending its redevelopment is down to the site owners, but my London Plan does encourage councils to have policies in their Development Plans encouraging the provision of space for urban agriculture on vacant sites and the meanwhile use of sites as temporary public realm. The Plan also includes policies on protecting the Green Belt, parks and natural habitats and the public realm so that development contributes to an environmental net gain. I fully expect the new masterplan for Earls Court to take these policies into account.

Earls Court Masterplan

Zack Polanski: What is your aspiration for the percentage of social rented housing as part of the housing mix on the Earls Court Masterplan? What conversations have you had, and what guidance have you given to the landowners or the borough on this?

The Mayor: My London Plan sets out my aspiration for affordable housing and what percentage of the overall affordable housing should be social rent for all developments in London. There is a strategic target for affordable housing of 50 per cent. The Plan also sets out the threshold approach for major housing developments. The threshold level of affordable housing on gross residential development is initially set at a minimum of 35 per cent or 50 per cent for public land where there is no portfolio agreement. A minimum of 30 per cent of the affordable housing provided should be either London Affordable Rent or Social Rent. Earls Court is not public land. Following the return of the estates to London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham council, the new owners are in the process of preparing a new masterplan and as with all developments the optimum level of social rented housing will be sought. There have been no conversations with the new owners to date, but my officers will engage with them at the appropriate time, following due process in relation to major planning applications.

Housing supply

Tony Devenish: Would you consider reporting housing figures in terms of habitable rooms, in addition to “units”, in order to show the number of people housed, improve clarity for Londoners, and avoid the current glut of studio and one-bedroom flats?

The Mayor: The GLA's monitoring of residential planning applications referable to the Mayor includes analysis of housing provision in terms of habitable rooms as well as the total number of homes. According to these figures, 41% of the habitable rooms approved in 2020 were affordable, and at scheme level the average affordable housing share by habitable rooms was 42% (the highest level yet recorded). Planning London Datahub includes fields for monitoring both habitable rooms and bedrooms.

Ethnicity Pay Gap

Krupesh Hirani: It is good to see the Mayor tackling the ethnicity pay gap in the GLA family. What are you doing to work with other organisations and how do we address that work at a pan-London level?

The Mayor: The GLA Group has led by example by publishing ethnicity pay gap audits alongside action plans since 2017. Latest data for the GLA is available here: Ethnicity pay gap report: March 2020 data | London City Hall
I call on the Government to make good on its commitments to introduce and enforce mandatory reporting of ethnicity pay gaps.
Addressing structural inequalities is a cross cutting principle of the London recovery programme, and I have declared the GLA a committedly anti-racist organisation.
Through my Good Work Standard employers of all sectors and sizes are encouraged to publish their ethnicity pay gap and demonstrate their commitment to preventing discrimination. I want all London employers to report and act on pay gaps in their organisations.
Through the Workforce Integration Network (WIN) programme I am working with businesses to improve the recruitment, progression and retention of young black men and other underrepresented groups.

Flood Response Capability (2)

Anne Clarke: The London Safety Plan says, “London Fire Brigade will: Extend the provision of personal protective equipment (PPE) for floods for frontline crews to ensure it has sufficient stock to deal with flooding incidents”. Can you tell me what the levels of flood-related PPE stock were in March 2017 when the London Safety Plan was published and the levels now?

The Mayor: Between 2018 and 2019 new dry suits and associated Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for Type B flood rescue teams were acquired to improve welfare and the ability to work for long durations during national flood response operations. This included 60 dry suits and 250 additional sets of flood rescue PPE for frontline crews. This enables London Fire Brigade to respond to two sites of widespread flooding and provide appropriate PPE for frontline crews during flood incidents.

Predatory Offenders Unit

Susan Hall: Since its launch how many arrests, charges and successful prosecutions have been made by the Met’s Predatory Offenders Unit?

The Mayor: Predatory Offender Units (POU) were launched in November 2020. To the end of September 2021, they have arrested more than 2,154 ‘high harm’ offenders. These include 1,312 arrests for domestic abuse offences, 378 for sex offences, 115 for child abuse offences and 84 for prison recalls/breaches of bail.
561 charges and other case disposals have resulted from POU activity. These include 292 for domestic abuse offences, 81 for breaches of court orders/restrictions, 69 for sexual offences and 84 for prison recalls/breach of bail.
Additionally, POUs have obtained 154 judicial restrictions (court orders), 199 restriction enforcement checks (checks to ensure conditions are being adhered to by offenders) and have executed 175 search warrants.
Information related to prosecutions is not held by the MPS.

Free School Meals (2)

Hina Bokhari: How are you working with boroughs and others to ensure that all children who receive free school meals in London get the best quality, healthiest food possible?

The Mayor: In 2019, I convened London’s first School Food Conference at City Hall, which brought local authorities, school leaders, school food caterers and campaigners together to explore the actions and initiatives that can help embed a whole school food approach.
These include my Healthy Schools London programme, which supports and rewards schools that promote a whole school approach to healthy eating including providing food that meets the School Food Standards, creating a welcoming dining room environment and embedding healthy eating across the curriculum with pupils learning about healthy food and cooking skills.
I will continue doing everything within my power to ensure every child in London can access nutritious food 365 days a year. However, the majority of levers with which to influence school food standards and procurement sit with central Government and I’d urge them to consider the End Child Food Poverty campaign’s call for an urgent review of school food provision.

GLA staff costs

Susan Hall: What is the GLA average cost of staff by grade including Director level?

The Mayor: The average salary of staff by grade, including director level, is set out in the table attached, as taken from the September 2021 Establishment report.
Grade
Average salary £
1
23,603
2
26,821
3
30,263
4
32,042
5
31,182
6
34,642
7
41,322
8
44,938
9
49,907
10
54,285
11
59,919
12
68,891
13
82,612
14
87,082
15
112,763
Chief Officer and Executive Directors
126,224

Public Inquiries (4)

Susan Hall: Please provide a breakdown by rank and grade of the number of police officers, staff and agency staff working on the Child Abuse Inquiry?

The Mayor: Operation Winter Key was formed in 2015 as a response to the MPS being a core participant in the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA) and additionally to investigate allegations of non-recent child sexual abuse involving people of public prominence and/or institutions. 233 investigations were completed and 350 charges secured.
In 2020/21 the staffing levels were as follows:
Rank / Role
Staff numbers
Detective Superintendent
0
Detective Chief Inspector
1
Detective Inspector
3
Detective / Police Sergeant
8
Detective / Police Constable
42
Analyst / Band D
2
Researcher
1
Indexer
6
Typist
6
Agency Staff
19
As of Monday 18th October 2021, Operation Winter Key will close and there will be no such dedicated MPS operation working on the IICSA Inquiry.

Support for Londoners

Tony Devenish: What will you do to practically help Londoners this winter, both to fight fuel poverty and to meet our climate needs?

The Mayor: My Warmer Homes Advice Service stands ready to support low income Londoners concerned about their energy bills. Services on offer include tailored advice on saving energy, support with making applications to my Warmer Homes programme (for grant support), support and advice on fuel debt, and help with accessing the Warm Home Discount. I would advise all low income Londoners to contact their energy supplier to see if they are eligible for this £140 Warm Home Discount. My Warmer Homes programme, provides grants of up to £5,500 for low income households requiring energy efficiency improvements. Alongside this, my Advice in Community Settings Programme is funding 11 partnerships starting in October between advice providers and community locations to help people experiencing financial hardship access advice where and when they need it.

Clean Air Fund

Leonie Cooper: What conversations have you had with government about including London in the Clean Air Fund?

The Mayor: Both I and my officers have raised this issue repeatedly with government ministers and officials. It is unfair that Londoners’ taxes contribute to the National Clean Air Fund but they do not receive the help that other cities have to support their residents, businesses and charities to implement their Clean Air Zones.
Birmingham, Greater Manchester, Bath and Portsmouth have all received government funding, much of which is to support local scrappage schemes. Government should also help Londoners by matching my commitment of £61m to my scrappage schemes for those on low incomes, with disabilities, charities and small businesses.

Public Inquiries (3)

Susan Hall: Please provide a breakdown by rank and grade of the number of police officers, staff and agency staff working on the Undercover Policing Inquiry?

The Mayor: The Undercover Police Inquiry is managed within a Unit called the Inquiry Review and Support Command. This command is responsible for managing a range of Inquiries and Inquests. Working in the main on the Undercover Police Inquiry, the command has 1 Detective Superintendent, 1 DCI, 4 officers at Inspector rank, 10 officers at Sergeant rank, 52 officers at constable rank, 10 staff members and 12 agency staff.

Deportation of EU Londoners

Sakina Sheikh: Will you write to the Home Secretary to ensure that EU Londoners will be protected from deportation? Particularly those who have applied for settled status within the set deadlines.

The Mayor: I share your concerns about the importance of ensuring European Londoners are protected from deportation. That is why I have invested over £1 million in bolstering capacity for the immigration advice sector, including targeting funding for rough sleepers and children in care who face some of the highest barriers accessing the EU Settlement Scheme.
My officers continue to work collaboratively with civil society stakeholders to raise issues on the protection of European Londoners rights directly with the Home Office and other government departments, including concerns about proving status under the EU Settlement Scheme, late applications, and possible racial profiling of European Londoners by British border officials.
I plan to continue supporting European Londoners and their families through strategic investment in the immigration advice sector and resources for European Londoners as part of my new Migrant Londoners Hub.

Affordable Housing for firefighters

Anne Clarke: What is being done to reduce the cost of housing for key workers such as firefighters?

The Mayor: Building more affordable housing is my top housing priority, and will help key workers on low and middle incomes move into housing they can afford. Over the next five years 79,000 genuinely affordable homes will be started in London across the remainder of the 2016-2023 Affordable Homes Programme and my new 2021-2026 Affordable Homes Programme.
In addition to building more affordable housing through my grant funding programmes, I am committed to strengthening planning guidance to create the expectation that key workers should be prioritised for intermediate homes, including the homes that developers provide without grant funding. Ensuring those most in need of intermediate homes are prioritised will help to widen access to affordable housing for key workers who cannot meet their housing needs in the open market.

Uncapped Service Charges and Cost of Living

Sem Moema: How many Londoners are affected by uncapped service charges? What impact does it have on their cost of living?

The Mayor: The GLA does not monitor service charges. The ability for freeholders to charge a service charge to leaseholders and the legal requirements for doing so are governed by the Landlord & Tenant Act 1985. Costs can only be recovered insofar as they have been reasonably incurred; service charges are not typically capped. However, I have always been clear that no leaseholder should be forced to pay to remediate historic building safety defects that were not their fault.
Alongside rent and mortgage payments, service charges will contribute to total housing costs. My London Plan sets out that to be considered affordable, annual housing costs including service charges should total less than 40 per cent of net household income.

Availability of Grave Diggers in London

Hina Bokhari: What, if any, assessment have you made of the provision and availability of grave diggers in London and the impact this is having on bereaved families?

The Mayor: The provision of grave diggers is a responsibility of Local Authorities except for a small number of private cemeteries. No issues have been flagged to my Resilience Team to suggest that there is an issue in relation to the current numbers of grave diggers. I have asked them to investigate this issue further.Throughout the pandemic a Mortality Management Group, now led by the City of Westminster, has monitored the aspects of death management processes including such as mortuary capacity and engagement with funeral directors to ensure that e existing system processes are sufficiently robust to cope with any further surges in excess deaths.This issue has not been raised as a risk by them to the COVID SCG.

Fixed Estate Charge in LLDC (1)

Sem Moema: Will you explore the possibility of capping the Fixed Estate Charge that is currently charged to residents who live within the London Legacy Development Corporation?

The Mayor: A review will be undertaken of the Fixed Estate Charge.The terms of reference for this review are currently being set.

Stopping Sites for Gypsies & Travellers

Sem Moema: What steps are you taking to ensure there are sufficient temporary stopping sites for gypsies and travellers in London?

The Mayor: I understand the urgent need for Gypsy and Traveller accommodation in London, including provision of both permanent and temporary stopping sites. Insufficient provision can negatively impact the health and way of life of Gypsies and Travellers. I am committed to regional collaboration to ensure that Gypsies and Travellers accommodation needs are met.
In line with London Plan Policy H14, my team is carrying out a London-wide Gypsy and Traveller accommodation needs assessment to inform borough Local Plans, which will consider the need for permanent and temporary sites and will be developed in partnership with Gypsies and Travellers.
Policy H14 requires boroughs to plan to meet Gypsies and Travellers accommodation needs, protect existing pitches, audit local authority sites and plan to address issues identified.
My team is developing a negotiated stopping protocol to be implemented on GLA land. Negotiated stopping has been found to have positive outcomes for Gypsies and Travellers needing roadside accommodation.

Social Care and Independent Living Services for Londoners (1)

Onkar Sahota: Do you agree that local authorities should prioritise independent living options for service users, including providing support staff to help in the home and day opportunities so that service users can get out and about in their communities?

The Mayor: While I have no responsibility for the commissioning or provision of social care services, I recognise absolutely the crucial importance of independent living. We know that maintaining independence can provide service users with a feeling of greater purpose and self-worth, enabling them to be active members of their local community. I wrote to the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care last year and called on him to make good his commitment to fix the social care crisis. I pointed out to him that Londoners need confidence that they will receive high quality social care when they need it, as close to home as possible, regardless of their ability to pay.

Social Care and Independent Living Services for Londoners (2)

Onkar Sahota: Do you have any plans to examine or publish a report into the current provision of independent living services for disabled and elderly Londoners?

The Mayor: I have no responsibility for the commissioning or delivery of social care services. I recognise the crucial importance of independent living, however, and will continue to press the Government to make good on the Prime Minister’s commitment to fix the social care crisis (see Mayor’s Question 2021/4320).

Empty Homes (1)

Sem Moema: Are you able to update the London Empty Homes Audit?

The Mayor: It is the responsibility of the boroughs to identify under-used or vacant dwellings in their area, and the GLA will support those efforts as appropriate.

Article 4 Directions (1)

Sakina Sheikh: How many Article 4 Directions have been rejected by the Government across London?

The Mayor: The most recent Article 4 Directions (A4D) relate to removing national permitted development rights for conversion of commercial, business and service uses to residential. However, A4Ds can be used to remove any of the national permitted development rights and are also used by boroughs to limit the use of estate agent boards or limit householder extensions in new developments for example.
We do not hold information on how many A4Ds have been rejected by the Government and are typically not involved as this is a local matter. Most of the recent ‘commercial, business and service to residential’ A4Ds are non-immediate and will not come into force until mid-2022. If the Government were to reject any of these (in whole or in part), previous experience suggests that this decision is unlikely to be taken until closer to that time.

Article 4 Directions (2)

Sakina Sheikh: What is your assessment of the rejection of Article 4 Directions in London? Is there a common reason why the Government would turn down a request from a borough to implement an Article 4 Direction?

The Mayor: To date, I have supported all nine of the Article 4 Directions (A4D) which I have been consulted on for removal of the ‘non-residential to residential’ permitted development rights (PDR) introduced by the Government in March 2021. I have also published strategic evidence to support such A4Ds in London.
The Government added a new paragraph 53 to the National Planning Policy Framework, so the use of A4Ds for ‘non-residential to residential’ PDR should only be used where it is: necessary to avoid wholly unacceptable adverse impacts (noting this would be unlikely to include a whole town centre); justified by robust evidence; and applies to the smallest geographical area possible.
Because existing transitional arrangements allow existing A4Ds to remain in force until 31 July 2022, ‘non-residential to residential’ A4Ds have been brought forward to date as non-immediate, coming into force after 12 months. If the Government were to reject any of the A4Ds for London, we would not expect this to happen until closer to the date when they are due to come into force.

Discount Market Housing Sales

Sakina Sheikh: What powers do you have to discourage developers from including discount market housing sales in their affordable housing figures?

The Mayor: London Plan Policy H6 requires 30 per cent of the affordable housing to be an intermediate product that meets the definition of genuinely affordable housing. There is a strong presumption in favour of London Living Rent or London Shared Ownership, rather than discount market sale (DMS) housing. In addition, at least 30 per cent of the affordable housing should be provided as low cost rent, with the other 40 per cent defined by the borough based on identified need.
On 24 May 2021, the Government issued a Written Ministerial Statement (WMS) requiring the discounted market sale product, First Homes, for at least 25 per cent of affordable housing units delivered through planning obligations.
In July 2021, the GLA issued a Practice Note to address this issue in the London context. This noted that while the WMS is a material consideration, and must be taken into account, the policies of the Development Plan (including the London Plan) remain the starting point for decision making. First Homes fall within the category of intermediate housing where they meet national and Mayoral affordability and eligibility criteria - but we are clear that the London Plan does not allow for the prioritisation of DMS products above the tenures set out in Policy H6.
In London, homes that meet the specified criteria of not exceeding £420,000 after a discount of at least 30 per cent from market value are likely to be restricted to smaller homes in lower value areas at the very upper end of the £90,000 household income limit. Therefore, while at the discretion of the local planning authority there may be a limited role for discount market housing in some parts of London, these are not expected to form a major proportion of the tenure mix.

Bevis Marks Synagogue

Sakina Sheikh: Do you share concerns that the historic Bevis Marks Synagogue is at risk of receiving no natural light if the City of London Corporation approves plans for two extra skyscrapers?

The Mayor: I have been advised by GLA officers that the planning application was refused on 5 October 2021. The next step is for the application to be referred to me for my consideration at Stage 2. I will consider the report from GLA planning officers before reaching a decision. As the application still requires a decision from me, it would not be appropriate for me to express a view on the planning merits of the application.

Parliamentary Bills

Sakina Sheikh: How many times has the GLA drafted Parliamentary Bills using Section 77 of the Greater London Authority Act 1999?

The Mayor: The GLA has not introduced any parliamentary bills under Section 77 of the Greater London Authority Act 1999. Transport for London and the former London Development Agency have however used this legislation to introduce private bills.

Potential administrative savings relating to the Oyster 60 plus card and Freedom Pass

Caroline Pidgeon: Has any examination been undertaken as to whether savings could be made if a single administrative body operated both the Oyster 60 plus card and the Freedom Pass?

The Mayor: The GLA Act details that it is for the boroughs (represented by the London Councils) to provide the Freedom Pass and they work with Transport for London to do this.
Merging the administration of the two schemes has not been considered. It is likely that any cost savings would be minimal given they have different tasks and needs associated with them.

Good Growth funded public toilets (3)

Caroline Russell: Thank you for your answer to my question 2021/3528. What design specification(s) for toilets do your Good Growth team deem ‘accessible’?

The Mayor: The listsharedin response to MQ3528providesanoverview ofthe numberof accessibletoilets refurbished and created through my Good Growth Fund investments.
Accessible toiletscreated via Good Growth Fund investments are defined as those meetingtheDisability Discrimination Act(DDA)requirements andcomplyingwith building regulations Approved DocumentMto ensure that a broad range of peopleare able toaccess and usepublicfacilities.

Good Growth funded public toilets (2)

Caroline Russell: Thank you for your answer to my question 2021/3528. In this answer you told me that there are 180 accessible toilets that are fully Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) compliant. However the additional information provided lists both ‘publicly accessible’ toilets and disability accessible. How many of the 180 ‘accessible’ toilets are DDA compliant?

The Mayor: In my answer to your previous question 2021/3528 I attached a list setting out the public toilets being delivered as part of my Regeneration funded programmes. The list sets out the number of publicly available toilets (302) and the number of accessible toilets (180). The list confirms that at least (52) are fully DDA compliant, although we would expect the rest to be as well. As indicated on the original list a number are subject to scheme development and require confirmation. I have therefore asked my staff to review and update the list and to confirm figures to you directly in due course.
I will of course continue totakea range of actions topromotetheprovision of free, publicly and fully accessible toilets in our city.

Increased pollution monitoring on red routes (2)

Zack Polanski: Thank you for your answer to my question 2021/1434. How many new pollution sensors have you installed, and how many are on the Transport for London Road Network (TLRN)?

The Mayor: London has 147 reference grade monitors, 51 of which are on the TLRN.
Complementing these, I am investing in 135 Breathe London small sensors across London with 109 already installed. Six of the 109 sensors are on the TLRN, and three are adjacent to a Red Route. This will increase as the remaining 26 sensors are installed, some of which will be on the TLRN.
The South London Partnership, consisting of the London boroughs of Richmond, Merton, Sutton, Kingston and Croydon, has purchased an additional 131 sensors. So far, 32 of these have been installed. Five are planned for the TLRN.
This month the Breathe London community programme will open for applications. Sixty sensors will be awarded over the next three years to community groups via application. In addition, Londoners and businesses will be able to purchase a sensor and choose the location.

UN COP26 summit in November 2021 (2)

Zack Polanski: Thank you for your answer to my question 2021/1440. What are your current plans for COP26?

The Mayor: It is vital that the COP26 summit secures commitments from nations to reduce emissions, whilst in London I have set out my ambitious target for London to reach net zero by 2030. In the lead up to COP26 I have been working with partners to underline the action we have been taking to tackle the climate emergency, and to highlight the new measures coming into place, such as the ULEZ expansion, in the coming weeks.
Given the crucial importance of this COP I will take part at events in COP26 to highlight the vital role that London and cities can play in tackling climate change. A programme of engagements is being finalised with our national and international partners.

Flood risks to critical infrastructure

Zack Polanski: You have stated that more than 200,000 residential and commercial properties are at risk of flooding from surface water events. Could you give a figure for each of the following types of public infrastructure also at risk, and indicate whether they are part of the existing total figure: a) hospitals, b) rail stations, c) police stations, d) energy sub-stations, e) fire stations, f) schools, and g) council buildings?

The Mayor: Information on public infrastructure specifically at risk of surface water flooding is not available.However the London Regional Flood Appraisal (2018) provides an overview of all sources of flooding (including tidal, river and or surface water) in London. Risk is expressed in relation against high (one in 30 year event) and medium (one in 100 year event ) flood risk.These figures are therefore not directly comparable with the total surface water flood expressed in the question.The combined flood risk for public infrastructure from that Appraisal are:
The London boroughs as lead local flood authorities are responsible for leading the coordination of local flood risk management in their areas. The Environment Agency has responsibility to coastal and river flood management.

SuDS at Hospital sites

Zack Polanski: Two hospitals – Newham and Whipps Cross in East London – saw flooding that caused a major incident in July 2021. Have these hospitals taken up your guidance on using Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS)?

The Mayor: Following the flooding incident, Barts Health NHS trust has confirmed that following repair to damage caused, that further improvements have been made across both hospitals to mitigate against future exceptional high levels of rainfall.
The new Whipps Cross Hospital design team applied SUDS principles in developing the flood alleviation plan for it. This included proposals for the future implementation of blue roofs, green spaces, permeable paths, swales and ponds. While I cannot confirm whether plans for these SUDS schemes were included as a result of my ‘Reimagining Rainwater’ guidance for hospitals, these solutions are included in the guidance for these settings.
I will continue to work with NHS London to raise awareness of my sustainable drainage systems guidance and other opportunities for SuDS delivery at hospital sites.

Director of Bus Operations

Keith Prince: Further to your response to 2021/2356, has a Director of Bus Operations been appointed yet?

The Mayor: Following a competitive recruitment process, Transport for London (TfL) appointedLouise Cheesemanasthe new Director of Buses. Louise joined TfL on Monday 2 August.
Louise joins TfL from Hull Trains, where she was Managing Director, and has 20 years’ experience in the transport industry.

Top ten LFB incidents since May 2016

Zack Polanski: What are the top ten incidents, by scale of response required, that London Fire Brigade (LFB) has had to handle since May 2016 when you were first elected?

The Mayor: The table below shows the top ten incidents, by scale of response (measured by the total time spent by all fire engines attending the scene), attended by London Fire Brigade (LFB) since May 2016.
Date
Description
Number of Fire appliance mobilisations during total duration of incident
Total appliance time on scene (hours)
14/06/2017
Grenfell Tower Fire
319
2163
05/07/2019
Grass fire near Launders Lane in Rainham
250
1203
15/07/2018
Grass fire on Wanstead Flats
209
1102
23/01/2017
Fire at industrial estate in Wembley
202
1035
12/02/2018
Fire at industrial estate in Greenford
198
984
23/06/2018
Fire at industrial estate in Leyton
197
958
18/09/2017
Storage warehouse fire in Tottenham
198
948
31/12/2018
Storage warehouse fire in Croydon
175
840
23/05/2019
Warehouse fire in Tottenham
179
826
09/09/2019
Fire at four story block of flats in Worcester Park
142
710

London-wide planning for flooding

Zack Polanski: How can a more centralised and coordinated approach be applied to flooding episodes and managing these across the city?

The Mayor: Whilst I have no formal powers related to flooding in London I have convened those with legal duties for surface water flooding in a series of roundtable meetings to support a more co-ordinated approach, help minimise risk and better prepare Londoners (see MQ2021/3508). The roundtables have led to an extensive rapid debrief with pan-London recommendations covering areas such as partnership coordination arrangements, real-time impact assessment, stakeholder and public communications, and community resilience.

Trunk water mains review

Anne Clarke: Are you satisfied that Thames Water is doing enough to prevent burst water mains following the March 2017 Trunk water mains review? If you are not satisfied, please outline your concerns and what further action Thames Water needs to take.

The Mayor: Despite some improvements following a peak in mains bursts in 2017, Thames have more to do to increase the reliability of their network, as is evident in their annual results for this year. As part of the last price review in 2019, I have worked with Thames Water, their shareholders and Ofwat to secure an additional £300 million of investment in mains renewal, announced last month. This contribution will match the funding from customers’ bills being spent to reduce leaks and bursts in London.
My Deputy Mayor for Environment and Energy meets regularly with Thames Water’s CEO and staff to raise issues around performance. My officers have worked with Thames Water to develop a set of new London specific indicators which will allow us – using this year as a baseline - to for the first time track their performance specifically in London as opposed to their region, including progress on mains renewal. My infrastructure team is working to improve coordination between utilities to minimise disruption for Londoners during network upgrades.

Healthy Start Vouchers (2)

Krupesh Hirani: The National Institute for Health Research has said that at the start of the year, the level of uptake of the Healthy Start Vouchers scheme was only at 50%. How will you use your platform to increase awareness around and the uptake of the scheme in London? For example, using TfL advertising to achieve this?

The Mayor: The long-overdue increase in the value of Healthy Start vouchers secured by the campaigning efforts of the likes of Marcus Rashford and dedicated charities means this the time to act to boost this vital safety net for young mothers to be and low-income families.
There are a range of partners who will have a role to play in supporting the increased take-up of Healthy Start vouchers. I am in the process of commissioning work to better understand what actions will be most effective in achieving this, and what role I can play. I will keep Assembly members updated.

Healthy Start Vouchers (1)

Krupesh Hirani: England footballer, Marcus Rashford MBE, expressed that the eligibility for Healthy Start Vouchers should be expanded to more families. Do you agree and if so by which means?

The Mayor: Yes, I agree. Healthy Start vouchers give vital financial support to low-income families.
As I have said previously, it is not right that thousands of Londoners and their children are missing out on mainstream welfare benefits including Healthy Start vouchers simply because of their immigration status. I have called repeatedly for the Government to suspend the No Recourse to Public Funds condition to enable people to get the support they need.
We also know that there are significant numbers of households in London experiencing what is characterised as ‘in-work poverty’. For these families, their earnings are not enough to ensure a decent standard of living, but too high for them to be eligible for schemes such as this. The government could include them in this much-needed scheme by expanding the eligibility criteria to include all Universal Credit, Child Tax Credit and Housing Benefit claimants, regardless of their income.

London Challenge Poverty Week

Marina Ahmad: The 11th – 17th October 2021 is London Challenge Poverty Week. What action have you and are you taking as Mayor to reduce poverty in London?

The Mayor: Through the Robust Safety Net mission of the London Recovery Programme, I am working with partners to ensure all Londoners have access to advice and support to prevent financial hardship by 2025. This includes funding 11 partnerships between advice providers and community locations to help Londoners access advice where and when they need it. We are also working with boroughs to establish a consistent approach to providing local welfare support.
Ultimately, the tools to tackle poverty lie in the hands of the Government. I am calling on Government to reverse the £20-a-week cut to Universal Credit, which has been estimated to put an extra 130,000 Londoners into poverty.
This year, I am marking London Challenge Poverty Week by working with the 4 in 10 Child Poverty Network to launch a report into the lived experiences of people directly affected by poverty in London. The insights of people with experience of poverty will directly inform the work of the Robust Safety Net mission.

Afghanistan refugee crisis in London (2)

Krupesh Hirani: In order to support Afghan refugees settling in London, what additional funding and backing is required by local councils and by the GLA?

The Mayor: I welcome the Government’s decision to align the two Afghan resettlementschemes and match these to the level of funding provided for the SyrianVulnerable Persons ResettlementScheme. These packages cover health, education, ESOL and welcome and integration support costs. I am also pleased to see the commitment to an additional £17million tosupportlocal authorities intheir work in providing accommodation over the longer term.
Localcouncilsmust now be provided with updated guidance from the Governmenton how funding can be claimed and spentas a matter of urgency.It alsoremainsunclear whatadditional housing capacity the £17 million fund willsecure for Afghan families, given the high housing costsin the capitaland limitationsimposed by theBenefit Cap and Local Housing Allowance rates.I have raised these concerns with Government and invitedfurther conversations tomake sure pledges of support progress to real offers of homes for families.

Afghanistan refugee crisis in London (1)

Krupesh Hirani: Can you update me on how many Afghan refugees have been housed in London? Is there any specific data for my constituency of Brent and Harrow?

The Mayor: To date, more than 3,000 people have been accommodated in London on a temporary basisin bridging hotels.Londonboroughs are starting to welcome families into longer termaccommodation,and we estimate thatmore than15families have beenhoused,withover 200furtherhomespledged. For example, one family has been welcomed in the London Borough of Brent, with a further two expected in the immediate future. Another family is expected to be rehoused in the London Borough of Harrow shortly.
Myteam is playing a leading role in advocating for the long-term integration needs of Afghanfamilies.My Right to Buy-back fund, which brings homes sold under the Right to Buyprogramme back into council ownership, will prioritise acquisitions and conversions which can be delivered by early 2022.Furthermore, I haveincreased funding available for family-sized homes to ensure there is a good supply of suitable homes for Afghan families.

Flooding (1)

Anne Clarke: How many London homes are currently at risk from fluvial and tidal flooding? Please provide the data in the same format as in 2016/1440.

The Mayor: The table below provides the number of homes currently at risk of various levels of tidal and fluvial flooding in London. The actual numbers will change regularly as new development is constructed, flood risk modelling, mapping and data gathering is refined and new flood defences are constructed. Due to the short timeframe for responding the Environment Agency has not been able to provide the data in the same format as 2016/1440. I have asked the Environment Agency to provide the information in the same format as soon as possible.

Universal credit and London’s Childhood Obesity Taskforce

Krupesh Hirani: Are you concerned that the Government’s decision to cut the £20 uplift in Universal Credit will hamper the work of London’s Childhood Obesity Taskforce?

The Mayor: London’s Child Obesity Taskforce has been very clear on the relationship between childhood obesity and deprivation. The poorer the neighbourhood, the more likely children are to be above a healthy weight and at risk of long-term negative health consequences. One ambition of the taskforce, as outlined in their publication ‘Every Child a HealthyWeight’, is toensureall families can afford healthy food and fun activities.
Before the pandemic around 700,000 of London’s children were living in low-income households. Cutting the £20 uplift in Universal Credit will push more than 60,000 of London’s children into poverty. This means that in order to afford to eat and drink well and do physical activity, tough decisions will need to be made by London’s families.
Without adequate financial support for struggling families, such as reintroducing the £20 a week uplift and removing the benefit cap, health inequalities will continue to widen with a disproportionate burden falling on disadvantaged communities across London.

Solar Together Scheme

Krupesh Hirani: What was the average estimated saving per customer for those that signed up at the last round of the Solar Together scheme?

The Mayor: The average estimated saving per customer for those signing up to phase 4 of my Solar Together London scheme was 33% compared to the typical market price at that time. For a eight-panel system – the most common system installed – customers have saved an average of £3,504.
Since 2018, my Solar Together London scheme has resulted in well over 1,000 installations of solar PV on Londoner’s rooftops. This equates to a total investment of £4.7million to date and a total carbon saving of around 13,500 tonnes per annum over 25 years. Hundreds more installations are currently underway through the fourth phase of the programme which will be the most successful phase to date.

Let's Do London

Tony Devenish: How many people have seen the Let’s Do London campaign? Please give a breakdown of people within London and outside London.

The Mayor: The latest data for the marketing campaign shows that so far it has reached 8.1 million people in London and 35 million outside of London.
The independent data analysed in September found domestic audiences who recall the Let’s Do London campaign are two and half times more likely to have visited London than those that cannot recall the campaign. Two-thirds of this audience have visited London since the launch of the campaign in May 2021. Amongst those who recall the campaign, their intent to visit London in the short term remains high at three-fifths. 9 in 10 people from outside London who recall the campaign intend to visit London within the next year. The latest data also shows that over 1,150 domestic PR articles were generated, over 14 million radio reach and over 4 million engagements with #LetsDoLondon.

Digital Skills Gap

Tony Devenish: It is estimated that 22% of UK adults do not have the essential digital skills needed for day-to-day life. What is the figure for London and what are your targets for reducing this figure?

The Mayor: The Lloyds Bank 2021 Consumer Digital Index states c21% of UK adults did not have ‘essential digital skills for life’ (down from 22% in 2020), compared to a London-average of 18%, equal to around 1.3m Londoners.
The aim of the London Recovery Programme’s Digital Access for All mission is for every Londoner to have access to good connectivity, basic digital skills and the device or support they need to be online by 2025.
I have allocated £1.5 million over the next two years to work with the London Office of Technology and Innovation (LOTI) on my Digital Inclusion Innovation Programme to support digitally excluded Londoners.
I am also addressing the digital skills gap through the Adult Education Budget. The latest available data shows that there were over 13,000 enrolments in digital courses between August 2020 and January 2021.

Digital Exclusion

Tony Devenish: What are you doing to empower Londoners to tackle digital exclusion?

The Mayor: Bridging the digital divide is a complex challenge, covering connectivity, affordability, basic skills and access toadevice.As part of the London Recovery Programme, the Digital Access for All mission includes ensuring that ‘Every Londoner has access to good connectivity, basic digital skills and the device or support they need to be online by 2025.’
This work brings together the Connected London Programme to boost full fibre investment andaffordable connectionsfor Londoners, the basic skills entitlement available for all adult Londoners from their local college and an innovation programme fromLOTI atLondon Councilsto make it easier for Londoners to get the support they need.Our ambition is a new digital access pathway for Londoners and practitioners to access the skills, device or other support people need.
Guided by the Chief Digital Officer for Londonand theDigital InclusionTaskforce, early work has focused on building better foundations for knowledge and action.LOTI is developing an open resource to improve data (link)and insight into exclusionand will shortly publish the first substantial review ofdigital inclusion initiatives currently underway in the city. This shows that there arewellover 100localprogrammes across London, focusing on mentoring, device-giving and outreachanddelivered by councils, community groups and the corporate sector.
An important new development is the availability of social tariffs so Londoners in search of work or on Universal Credit can get a low-cost connection.Reaching Londoners will require close working between corporate, public and voluntary sectorsusing the foundation we arebuilding, andsharing and reusing local ideas successful in one part of London, to others.We will explore opportunities to promote social tariffs throughourfunded programmes that are directly supporting low-income Londoners, for example, the Advice in Community Settings grant programme.

Supporting Emerging Technology Trends

Tony Devenish: What emerging technology trends have you identified in London and how are you supporting their growth?

The Mayor: My economic development teamcommissionedDigital Catapultto project forward, inform and advise on technology research and innovation trends over the next 15 years. Their2020report identifies London as a global leader in advanced digital technologies, including AI, extended reality and 5G and future networks.Thisworks complementsthefive missions identified in my2018Smarter London Together Strategy.
I amdirectlysupportingthegrowth ofemerging technologiesthrougha number ofinitiatives,including
TechInvestprogramme- an event series delivered in partnership with the UK Business Angels Associationthatconnects London's tech founders with industry leading investors.
Resilience Fund, which matches tech start-ups with potential customers across the public, private and third sectors.
Supporting start-ups in accessing the marketand providing solutions for London’skey challenges.
In addition, I ammaking sure thatnewtechnologieshavethe digital connectivity they need to grow.ThroughTransport for London’sground-breaking partnership with BAI,more Londonerswill have access to faster connectivity through the laying of fibre cablesthroughLondon undergroundnetwork,andexpanding the4G networkincluding to the underground. Thisextensive fibre network includingTfL streetassetswill also ensureLondon isready for the expansion of5G.Building on this, over £30m of grantfundingwill be used across Londontoupgradepublic sectorsitesto deliver new digital services in areas where they are most needed.
I am also guiding the ethical and safe development of new technologies through my recently launchedEmerging Technology Charter, the first of its kind in any UK city.The Chartersets out fourprinciplesthat aimto foster a trustworthy environment for innovation to flourish, and to do so responsibly for the benefit of Londoners.

Age-friendly City

Tony Devenish: What are you doing to make London an age-friendly city?

The Mayor: The work of making London a more age-friendly city is something that will be taken forward through a range of strategies, policies and programmes across the GLA – and by other partners.
I am, for instance, addressing older Londoners’ housing, skills and employment and digital exclusion issues and have in place initiatives to maintain their physical and mental wellbeing. This includes financially supporting the UK’s first LGBT+ retirement community and mapping areas where older Londoners are more likely to be digitally excluded to inform policy making and programme design. I have also just launched a programme focused on the provision of digitally inclusive services to people affected by dementia.
To ensure the views and needs of older Londoners are embedded in London’s long-term recovery from the coronavirus pandemic, I am working with recovery partners to develop an action plan to address structural inequality. Members of the London Recovery Board are working with older Londoners and their stakeholder organisations to co-produce a vision statement setting out the change we want to see that will directly inform this action plan.

Air Quality

Tony Devenish: Research by Kings College London has shown air quality for 99% of Londoners still exceeds World Health Organization guidance and that little has changed in your 5 years as Mayor as we approach COP26. Will you drop the, in my view, stealth taxes and come up with a strategy which works?

The Mayor: When I came into office in 2016 Kings College London estimated that with the policies in place it would have taken 193 years to reach even legal compliance with air quality limits. London is now on track to achieve legal compliance by 2025. In 2016, 455 state schools were in areas exceeding legal limits, now it is just 14.
Between 2016 and 2019 air quality in London improved 5 times faster than the rest of the country. My strategy, including the ULEZ, is reaping rapid and sustained rewards, cleaning up the air and protecting the health of millions of Londoners.
It is also putting us on track to meet the original, more stringent health-based World Health Organization targets which I have adopted. I continue to lobby Government to include these targets on the face of the Environment Bill and support local authorities to work towards meeting them as fast as possible.

Flash Flooding

Tony Devenish: What specific lessons have you learnt from the flash flooding in the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham this summer?

The Mayor: I convened a roundtable meeting of relevant organisations to review the flooding in London on 12th and 25th July, and ensure everything possible is being done to prevent and reduce the impact of flooding. Further meetings have been convened to identify areas for improvement and oversee progress co-chaired by my Deputy Mayors for Fire and Resilience and Environment and Energy, to consider London’s emergency response arrangements and longer-term prevention and adaptation activity.
The London Resilience Forum conducted a multi-agency debrief to inform and improve future emergency response arrangements that identified 30 recommendations which are being progressed by the London Resilience Partnership. Recommendations include improving response plans, communications between responding organisations, situational awareness and access to data, public communications, and clarifying roles and responsibilities for operational matters and support to the public.
A task and finish group has also been set up to provide recommendations on the longer-term challenges for managing surface water flooding, including funding, governance, and evidence gaps.

Climate Change

Tony Devenish: With your call that time is fast running out to save the planet, can you please produce an organogram of all the posts within the GLA family which are tasked with driving the required step changes to illustrate you are "walking the walk” to ensure climate change measures are front and centre of all GLA activities. Please include named individuals as well as posts to ensure Londoners can interact to support the required change.

The Mayor: The GLA currently has a core unit of 76 full time equivalent posts working in the environment and energy unit to deliver our Green New Deal, aiming to double the size of London’s green economy by 2030, while tackling the climate and ecological emergencies and air pollution.
But climate change is not just an issue for the environment and energy unit. Tackling climate change is embedded across the work of City Hall – from Planning and Skills to Housing and Health. Sustainability principles are also embedded across London’s Recovery Board work.
Across the GLA Group there are a further 37 full time equivalent staff working directly in environmental roles. But again, these numbers don’t tell the whole story – many other teams have key roles in addressing climate change, such as procurement and TfL’s City Planning team.
We are all responsible for the environment, and all GLA Group staff embed sustainability into organisational culture as we go about our daily roles.
The GLA does not routinely publish the names of individual members of staff, with the exception of senior staff which can be found on the london.gov.uk website. We have well-established channels for communication between Londoners and the GLA.

Flooding

Tony Devenish: You spoke on 23rd September of “Climate Crossroads” at the Barbican. You commented 31 tube stations were flooded this summer. What specifically will you do to address this as Chairman of TfL and how will these practical measures inform the GLA’s response to, as you put it “walking the walk, rather than just talking the talk?”

The Mayor: Successful climate change adaptation cannot be done by one organisation in isolation: the whole city must work together. That is why, following the July flooding events, I set up a series of roundtables with key stakeholders, including Transport for London (TfL), to identify and address gaps in emergency response. From this, I have established a Task and Finish Group to focus on London’s adaptation to surface water flooding.
TfL is undertaking a research programme to better understand the impacts of current and future weather events on their operations and so better target resources. TfL also collaborates widely with relevant stakeholders, for example through chairing the Transport Adaptation Steering Group, to share best practice.
My officers have developed climate risk mapping, which is being used by TfL to shortlist TfL projects that will receive, and identify borough projects that could receive, a share of my £4 million Green and Healthy Streets fund.
Please also see my response to Mayor’s Question 2021/3520.

Impact of Brexit on the Construction Industry (2)

Sem Moema: What does the impact of Brexit on the construction industry mean for the delivery of social rented homes?

The Mayor: Providers delivering my Affordable Homes Programme are already reporting that the impacts of Brexit-related cost pressures and labour shortages are being felt on the ground. If London is to get the social housing it so desperately needs, the Government must ensure it is doing all it can to support delivery.
For example, Brexit and the pandemic have left thousands of struggling businesses with a shortage of workers following the introduction of new immigration rules and the return of many EU nationals to their country of birth.
London housebuilders and construction firms have identified issues hiring specialist trades like bricklayers and carpenters, as well as general construction labourers as a result. Construction growth is also being impacted by a shortage of materials caused by a combination of factors including delays on products imported from the EU.
I have therefore urged the Government to introduce a new ‘Covid Recovery Visa’ to help businesses in sectors like construction that are struggling with shortages of workers.

Empty Homes (2)

Sem Moema: What steps are you taking to ensure that Empty Homes across London are brought into use for either social housing or private rented accommodation?

The Mayor: I support councils using Empty Dwelling Management Orders (EDMO) to take over management of unoccupied homes and bring them into use as rental properties. However, since 2012 the government has restricted the circumstances in which EDMOs can be used, significantly reducing their effectiveness.
I am continuing to call on the government to give councils the powers to set the council tax premium levied on empty homes at whatever rate they feel necessary to incentivise occupation.
In addition, I have commissioned further research to understand in more detail the reasons why homes may be under-utilised or left empty to better inform future policy decisions.

Rough Sleeping (1)

Sem Moema: What preparations are the GLA making to help those rough sleeping this winter?

The Mayor: My team has been working hard to make all the rough sleeping services in my ‘Life Off the Streets’ programme COVID-safe, so they can continue to operate despite the ongoing risks of transmission. These services will support hundreds of people off the streets over the course of the winter. As in past years, I will activate the Severe Weather Emergency Protocol (SWEP) when temperatures drop to 0°C anywhere in London. This means that councils across London must open emergency accommodation for people who are sleeping rough during the worst weather conditions. City Hall’s own severe weather provision will be available to anyone who finds that local provision is full. My ‘In for Good’ principle means that once someone has accessed borough or City Hall SWEP accommodation, they are accommodated until a support plan is in place to end their rough sleeping.

Rough Sleeping (2)

Sem Moema: During Covid the Government provided funding for hotels to put up those rough sleeping in London. What discussions have you had regarding the possibility of repeating this with winter approaching?

The Mayor: I successfully secured funding from government to continue to some of the GLA-procured hotels throughout the winter. These will be used to continue to accommodate those who came in as part of the COVID-19 response and are still there (mainly non-UK nationals, for whom longer-term options are very limited), as well as new rough sleepers being supported by my new turnaround hubs. City Hall is also working closely with councils in London to ensure there is adequate, safe severe weather accommodation available as winter approaches. I will continue to lobby government to provide the additional funding that London needs for this accommodation over the winter, as well as for improved options for non-UK national rough sleepers.

Impact of Brexit on the Construction Industry (1)

Sem Moema: What impact has Brexit had on:
The housebuilding sector


Supplies and costs of materials


Supply of skilled labour

The Mayor: According to the Office for National Statistics in July 2021 the volume of online job postings in London was around 21% higher than in July 2020, with that figure rising to 43% for construction and building trades.
This is why I recently backed calls for a new ‘Covid Recovery Visa’ to help businesses in sectors like construction that are struggling with a shortage of workers following new immigration rules and many EU nationals returning to their country of birth during the pandemic.
The UK Construction Purchasing Managers' Index (IHS Markit/CIPS) reported slower construction growth in September in part due to a shortage of materials and delays on products imported from the EU.
Data from June 2021 showed annual cost increases for many building materials, including 88 per cent for iron and 25 per cent for steel – attributed to the combined impact of Brexit, Covid-19 and the temporary blockage of the Suez canal.

Lateral flow testing in schools

Onkar Sahota: Do you believe that the Government should give schools the resources to continue to keep supervised on-site lateral flow testing in place, as this will ensure that pupils are testing regularly, and the results are likely to be more accurate?

The Mayor: I am very grateful for the hard work our schools have put in throughout the COVID-19 pandemic and am aware of the huge impact on workload for schools, staff and students.
The guidance for asymptomatic lateral flow testing in schools recommends that secondary school-age children in both mainstream and specialist educational settings are strongly encouraged to test, although it is voluntary. I support the recently updated guidance which recommends secondary schools retain a small asymptomatic testing facility on-site until further notice so they can offer testing to pupils who are unable to test themselves at home, as we know the variety of challenges faced by many of our children.
School budgets are already stretched as they support their students to catch up on lost learning. I believe the Government needs to provide schools with the additional resources to maintain and supervise testing on-site.

Vaccine hesitancy in London (1)

Onkar Sahota: Less than two thirds of adults in the capital have received two doses of the COVID-19 vaccine. What actions are you taking through the GLA to address the residual issue of hesitancy and ensure that all of London’s diverse communities are being offered the vaccine?

The Mayor: Since the COVID-19 vaccine rollout has begun, my communications and communities teamshave beendelivering a London-widecampaign to tackleCOVID-19vaccine hesitancy - delivering key messages onCOVID-19vaccinesto hesitant audiences.
The GLA have been working with partners across London to deliver this workincluding London Councils,Public Health England (PHE), NHS,community and faith groups, businesses, unions,London andBAMEmedia,andinfluencers toensure we are reaching hesitant Londoners.
Throughout the campaign, we have been focusing our work on reaching the most hesitant in the eligible cohorts,most recently focusing on the younger cohort (under 35s), and specific minority communities that are most hesitant. Working with partners we are currently planning the next phase of the campaign over the winter months, to encourage uptake of the booster jab and among those that have not yet come forward for their vaccine.
We are continuing to raise issues of barriers to vaccination across the range of meetings that we are involved in.

National Insurance increase

Marina Ahmad: What impact will the national insurance increase have on Londoners? Are you able to break down the impact by London borough?

The Mayor: The planned increase in National Insurance contributions (NICs) from April 2022 will affect all London workers and employers who are currently paying contributions. From April 2023 the increase will also apply to the earnings of those above pensionable age, as part of the rollout of the Health and Social Care Levy.
The Government estimates that the levy will lead to a net tax revenue increase of £11.4Bn per year once indirect effects (e.g., interactions with welfare payments) and compensation of public sector employers are accounted for. By apportioning this total using regional shares of NICS revenue in 2019/20, GLA Economics estimates that the incidence on London households will be around £2.3Bn.
This is an illustrative, top-down estimate and it is not straightforward to break it down by local authority. At a household level, HM Treasury analysis suggests that households in the top-20% income bracket will contribute the majority of revenues.
Please also see the GLA's technical note onHealth and Social Care Levy - Incidence on London Households, published on the London Datastore athttps://data.london.gov.uk/dataset/health-and-social-care-levy---inciden....

Bleed control kits

Caroline Russell: Why did the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) First Aid Clinical Review Panel decide not to issue bleed control kits more widely to its officers?

The Mayor: The Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) First Aid Clinical Review Panel has reviewed equipment to manage catastrophic bleeding. The Panel includes representatives from London Ambulance Service, helicopter emergency response and advice from medical bodies.
All MPS vehicles carry an operational first aid kit, which includes pressure dressings and tourniquets to deal with catastrophic bleeding. The Panel believes this is appropriate for MPS requirements and will continue to keep this under review.

Reviewing GLA toilets with an access consultant

Caroline Russell: A constituent has contacted me raising concern about the design of toilets for people with disabilities, as they are not all suitable for all users. After raising these concerns during a visit to the Design Museum, they committed to having their whole building surveyed by an access consultant. Will you review toilets on the GLA estate with an access consultant?

The Mayor: The entire proposed design, including the toilet provisions for the new City Hall at the Royal docks has been reviewed by an Access Consultant with the design being approved by the consultant.
LLDC’s toilets across Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park’s venues have been designed in accordance with relevant legislation and good practice guidance.
All schemes within LLDC’s boundary are required to demonstrate that they meet the LLDC Inclusive Design Standard.
Inclusive Design is one of LLDC’s core Priority Themes, and the policy can be found here:Policies | Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park . In support of this, LLDChas a permanent Accessibility and Inclusivity Design Principal advising on all building projects undertaken at the Park, and regularly reviews the facilities.
LLDC’s Built Environment Access Panel is made up of independent advisorswith vast experience and knowledge of inclusive design review planning applications and schemes in and around QEOP to ensure that accessibility principles are upheld.
The London Fire Brigade’s head office toilets are not generally open to the public, however they have been designed to comply with Building Regulations in force at the time of installation, which includes Part M, ‘Access to and use of buildings.’ Part M ensures that a minimum standard is adhered to with respect to accessibility and use of facilities. Where we have a staff member with specific needs, which have not already been met, we would make ‘reasonable adjustments’ to the applicable facilities on an ad-hoc basis, as required by the Equality Act.
We continue work with our people and our staff network groups to ensure everyone is able to access and use facilities within our buildings making sure we consider any specific needs of building users that might be reasonably met.
TfL’s head office toilets are not generally open to the public however they have been designed to comply with Building Regulations in force at the time of installation, which includes Part M, ‘Access to and use of buildings.’ Part M ensures that a minimum standard is adhered to with respect to accessibility and use of facilities. Where we have a staff member with specific needs, which have not already been met, we would make ‘reasonable adjustments’ to the applicable facilities on an ad-hoc basis, as required by the Equality Act.
We continue to work with our people and our staff network groups to ensure everyone is able to access and use facilities within our buildings making sure we consider any specific needs of building users that might be reasonably met.
The Metropolitan Police Service is always keen to ensure that its facilities meet the needs of all of our building users and our design for disabled toilets follow the requirements set out in Part M of the Building Regulations.
Should we be alerted to any issues with regards to our estate and specifically in relation to Part M, we would be happy to review what improvements could be incorporated into our Design Standards. It would therefore be helpful to have access to more specific detail about the users to which the Building Regulations do not satisfy and we will review what can be done.

Concerns about standard disabled toilets

Caroline Russell: A constituent has contacted me raising concern about the standard disabled toilet, built to conform to Document M, as supplied by the British Standards Institute, as they are not all suitable for all users. Would you consider reviewing the requirements of accessible toilets across the GLA estate to ensure they are useable for all people with disabilities?

The Mayor: The new City Hall in the Royal Docks will be a leading building for disabled toilet provisions. In addition to Accessible Toilets being provided in line with Part M of the Building Regulations, including both left and right handed provision, further augmented toilet facilities will be provided for Ambulant Disabled People, and an enhanced Changing Places facility will be included.
The current City Hall also conforms to Part M of the building regulation and has enhanced Changing Places facility as well.
The guidance set out in Document M is minimum legal requirement. LLDC’s Sanitary Facilities have been designed to comply with the LLDC Inclusive Design Standards and BS8300.
All of LLDC’s venues offer accessible toilets and appropriate provision of toilet cubicles designed to meet the needs ofusers inclusive of ambulant disabled people, wheelchair users, older people and people who require support.
In addition, Changing Places toilet facilities (larger accessible toilets for severely disabled people, with equipment such as hoist, curtains, changing benches and space for carers) are available in the Timber Lodge and The Podium, as well as at each of the venues for venue users.
LLDC’s general design criteria for inclusive toilet facilities include provision of adequate maneuvering space for disabled people, cubicles with adequate width and the location of toilet blocks serving audience areas within close proximity to the wheelchair user accessible spaces.
LLDC constantly engage with their Inclusive Design Champion and experts to ensure the best possible level of access and inclusion is achieved and to create safe environment for all regardless of their abilities.
The London Fire Brigad’s head office toilets are not generally open to the public however they have been designed to comply with Building Regulations in force at the time of installation, which includes Part M, ‘Access to and use of buildings.’ Part M ensures that a minimum standard is adhered to with respect to accessibility and use of facilities. Where we have a staff member with specific needs, which have not already been met, we would make ‘reasonable adjustments’ to the applicable facilities on an ad-hoc basis, as required by the Equality Act.
We continue work with our people and our staff network groups to ensure everyone is able to access and use facilities within our buildings making sure we consider any specific needs of building users that might be reasonably met.
TfL’s head office toilets are not generally open to the public however they have been designed to comply with Building Regulations in force at the time of installation, which includes Part M, ‘Access to and use of buildings.’ Part M ensures that a minimum standard is adhered to with respect to accessibility and use of facilities. Where we have a staff member with specific needs, which have not already been met, we would make ‘reasonable adjustments’ to the applicable facilities on an ad-hoc basis, as required by the Equality Act.
We continue to work with our people and our staff network groups to ensure everyone is able to access and use facilities within our buildings making sure we consider any specific needs of building users that might be reasonably met.
The Metropolitan Police Serviceis always keen to ensure that its facilities meet the needs of all of our building users and our design for disabled toilets follow the requirements set out in Part M of the Building Regulations.
Should we be alerted to any issues with regards to our estate and specifically in relation to Part M, we would be happy to review what improvements could be incorporated into our Design Standards. It would therefore be helpful to have access to more specific detail about the users to which the Building Regulations do not satisfy and we will review what can be done.

Extinction Rebellion 2021 protest arrests

Caroline Russell: How many people arrested as part of the 2021 Extinction Rebellion protests in London were: a) released under investigation, and b) remain under investigation?

The Mayor: There were 508 arrests in the 2 week period between 23/08/2021 and 05/09/2021 when Extinction Rebellion staged their “Impossible Rebellion”. Of these, 490 were released under investigation following their arrest, of whom 440 remain under investigation and 50 have been charged.

banning the use of combustible materials

Anne Clarke: The Government’s Review of the ban on the use of combustible materials in and on the external walls of buildings closed on 25 May 2020. In your discussions with Government, have they outlined when they plan to respond to the consultation?

The Mayor: I responded to the government review of the ban on the use of combustible materials and my response can be found here. I have always been clear that government must extend the ban on the use of combustible materials to all new residential buildings, regardless of height or use. I have taken steps to ensure that this is the case for buildings funded through my Affordable Homes Programme 2021-26 and on GLA-owned land commissioned via LDP2.
I have raised the combustibles ban with the government, but they have not given any indication when they will respond to the consultation.

Transparency and Safety

Anne Clarke: What changes in transparency do you believe are needed for people to feel safe in their homes following the Grenfell Tower fire?

The Mayor: It will take a long time to rebuild people’s trust in the safety of the buildings they live in, but resident engagement and transparent communications are an important start.
I have called on government to introduce a statutory duty for building owners to share building safety information with their residents. I welcome the government’s inclusion of this requirement in the Building Safety Bill. In recognition of the urgency of the situation I recently wrote to London building owners urging them to share Fire Risk Assessments with their residents, in advance of the bill’s implementation.
However, for people to feel truly safe in their homes we need robust regulatory reform. If the system continues to be flawed, no amount of transparency will improve people’s sense of safety. I welcome the bill but some changes are needed before it can truly support the creation of an effective regulatory regime. For example, the definition of ‘higher risk buildings’ should take account of more than just height as a factor of fire risk.

School Smoke Alarms (1)

Anne Clarke: How many of London’s schools do not currently have smoke alarms fitted?

The Mayor: In London, 116 schools are recorded as not having fire detection systems, such as smoke alarms, being fitted. This represents approximately 6.7 per cent of the total number of schools recorded in London Fire Brigade systems.

Fire safety in care homes

Anne Clarke: What fire safety improvements would you like to see in London’s care homes?

The Mayor: The holistic approach to fire safety promoted by London Fire Brigade (LFB) needs to be adopted and implemented by all care home operators and those responsible for sheltered accommodation. That meanshaving person-centred risk assessments, risk reduction and prevention measures.Effective management including adequate staffing levels to facilitate safe evacuation (particularly at night),emergency plans, and staff trainingare all key to the safety of residents.
LFB has outlined concerns to the Coroner followinga number of fatal fires in care homes. Risk factors such as unsafe smoking arenotalways highlighted and acted on by carersso LFB encourages care providers to train staffto identify and help mitigate fire risks. This could includereferral to the Local Authority for a Home Fire Safety Visit if the person they provide care to lives in sheltered accommodation, or Telecare linked to smoke detection where suitable.

Grenfell community

Anne Clarke: How have you supported the Grenfell community in their fight for truth and justice?

The Mayor: The Grenfell Tower fire was an appalling tragedy and Londoners will always remember the 72 people who lost their lives in a fire that should never have happened.Since the fire, I have been supporting the community in their fight for truth, justice and change and I shall continue to do so. I am in regular communication with members of the Grenfell Community and am a strong advocate for them.
The Grenfell Inquiry is exposing the truth of what happened. I am a Core Participant in the Grenfell Inquiry and am following the evidence closely. I am publishing regular updates on London Fire Brigade progress with the Grenfell Phase 1 recommendations and have pledged to hold to account those responsible for the remaining recommendations. Justice is necessary and the independent criminal investigation is ongoing.
Families have told me that they do not want others going through what they went through. Ensuring there is change and preventing another Grenfell is vital. I have taken steps to ensure that wider lessons from Grenfell are being learned in London. I shall continue to work with and to lobby government for the systemic change that is needed.

London prepared (2)

Anne Clarke: How are you making sure that London continues to be prepared for long-term chronic incidents?

The Mayor: I commissioned a review of the response arrangements to Chronic Incidents, long term disruptions, in February of this year following the experience of COVID and the preparations we made for a no-deal Brexit. The review was presented to and accepted by the London Resilience Forum in June with a total of 19 recommendations to be enacted. My Deputy Mayor for Fire and Resilience is also closely engaged with both the Civil Contingencies Secretariat and Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities whilst they undertake a review of the National Resilience Strategy and the Civil Contingencies Act. The outcomes of these strategies coupled with my City Resilience Strategy with I launched in Feb 2020 will provide the legislation, tools and ambition to make London a resilient City.

London prepared (1)

Anne Clarke: How are you making sure that London continues to be prepared for short-term disruptions?

The Mayor: The work of the London Resilience Forum is focussed on preparing for disruptions whether short or long term and a suite of plans and capabilities remain in place which prepare London to coordinate its response to any short-term disruption. In light of the current situation relating to hauliers, energy prices and consumer behaviours influencing the availability of fuel, my Deputy Mayor for Fire and Resilience has convened a Round Table assessment of current supply chain system issues to understand any potential impact this winter. My Chief of Staff has also convened a seasonal preparedness meeting bringing together key stakeholders to assess specific preparedness for the coming winter.

Afghan Refugees (1)

Joanne McCartney: How are you supporting recent Afghanistan refugees to access skills and employment support?

The Mayor: London has a proud history of providing refuge to those seeking sanctuary and I’m determined to do everything in my power to ensure the Afghani people displaced by the crisis are supported to access the skills they need to secure employment and establish a long term future in our city.
I have issued guidance to adult education providers specifying that individuals arriving under the Afghan Relocation and Assistance Policy (ARAP) and Afghanistan Citizens’ Resettlement Scheme (ACRS) are eligible for Adult Education Budget (AEB) funded training on arrival.
From this year, I will also fully fund all eligible asylum seekers to access AEB skills support and training. Previously, despite being prohibited from working, asylum seekers would have had to cover the costs of their learning. This will provide much needed support to help them participate in society and re-build their lives.

Afghan Refugees (2)

Joanne McCartney: How are you supporting recent Afghanistan refugees to access ESOL support?

The Mayor: Afghani nationals arriving to the UK via the Afghan Relocation and Assistance Policy (ARAP) and Afghanistan Citizens’ Resettlement Scheme (ACRS) are eligible for Adult Education Budget provision, including ESOL courses from the date of arrival. This entitlement is in addition to £850 funding for ESOL allocated per adult through each scheme. This funding is available to local authorities to facilitate access to informal provision and ensure new arrivals receive specific support according to their individual circumstances.
I have issued guidance to adult education providers on how best to support Afghani nationals and I have also ensured that local authority resettlement leads receive support from the GLA in making contact with ESOL providers in their local area.
From this year, I will also fully fund all eligible asylum seekers to access AEB skills support and training. Previously, despite being prohibited from working, asylum seekers would have had to cover the costs of their learning. This will provide much needed support to help them participate in society and re-build their lives.

Healthy Start Vouchers (3)

Krupesh Hirani: In April 2021, the value of Healthy Start Vouchers rose by £120 a year, with the weekly standard value increasing from £3.10 to £4.25. Whilst this is a step in the right direction, do you believe that the value of the vouchers should be increased further to account for rises in food prices?

The Mayor: As well as limiting the ability of low-income families to secure the full financial and nutritional benefit of Healthy Start vouchers, the 10-year freeze in their value was surely a significant contributing factor to the long-term decline we have seen in their uptake.
I am pleased that the Government accepted the recommendation of the National Food Strategy to implement an increase in the vouchers’ value to make up for this decade of lost growth. It is important that this is maintained, with vouchers being uprated regularly to keep track with the cost of living.

Fire safety defects (1)

Anne Clarke: Can you outline what action is needed to ensure no leaseholder has to pay to fix fire-safety defects in their homes that they had no part in creating?

The Mayor: No leaseholder deserves to pay for mistakes they did not cause. The building safety crisis is a systemic problem, grounded in a flawed regulatory system that was sanctioned by government and that has, in many ways, benefitted industry. As such, it is government’s and industry’s responsibility to pay to solve this crisis.
The most immediate step government needs to take is to commit to fully funding remediation works for buildings where cladding and non-cladding issues pose serious fire and life safety risks. This will ensure that remediation is not delayed by lack of funding. The government can then claim back costs from industry through funding mechanisms targeting developers, such as the developer levy I called for in December 2020, a less ambitious version of which was subsequently announced by ministers.

School Smoke Alarms (2)

Anne Clarke: What action are you taking to ensure smoke alarms are fitted in all schools in London?

The Mayor: London Fire Brigade (LFB) ensures that appropriate measures are in place across all premises to which the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 applies to detect and warn of fire through its day-to-day inspection and enforcement regime. This includes working with schools to ensure that Responsible Persons are acting in accordance with their legal duties.
LFB has long campaigned for effective fire safety measures in schools, including the mandatory requirement for automatic fire suppression systems, such as sprinklers, in all new school builds and major refurbishments. This would provide both early detection and suppression of fire, thereby limiting the potential damage to schools and the risks to the public, and firefighters attending such incidents. Most recently this issue was included in LFB’s response to the Department for Education consultation on Building Bulletin 100 – Design for fire safety of schools and the letter I wrote in support of such action. The outcome of that consultation is currently awaited.

Child Refugees

Joanne McCartney: Many child refugees come to the UK still suffering the effects of traumatic experiences in their country of origin. Are you satisfied with the support children in London receive to deal with trauma, and if not, what do you think can and should be done?

The Mayor: The unmet health needs of children arriving in London are a concern and should be addressed as a priority - irrespective of immigration status. I am proud that my Young Londoners Fund is supporting six projects targeting young refugees, many providing support for those suffering the traumatic effects of forced migration. I am also supporting training in trauma-informed care, targeting GPs supporting residents in contingency asylum accommodation. My Asylum Welcome Programme will provide intensive support for local authorities on service design, including services for children and health services.
However, investment is needed to ensure that the NHS can respond with trauma-informed and culturally responsive support options that are available to all children in contact with the immigration system, particularly unaccompanied asylum-seeking children. I also know that mental health needs are commonly exacerbated by the experience of the immigration process, reforms to which are urgently needed to safeguard children and young people.

Debt advice

Joanne McCartney: What action are you taking to increase and improve the debt advice offered to Londoners who find themselves in debt?

The Mayor: With the current cost of living crisis coinciding with the end of both the furlough scheme and the Universal Credit uplift, there has never been a more important time to ensure that Londoners are supported to deal with problem debt.
When there was a spike in demand for debt advice last winter, I funded the Debt Free London Partnership to operate on a 24/7 basis and I’ll continue to promote their service over the coming months. I’m also investing more than £1.5 million in my Advice in Community Settings programme which is funding partnerships across the city to embed debt and other advice services in community settings to reach the most excluded Londoners.
Through the Robust Safety Net recovery mission, I am working with partners including local authorities, funders, and advice infrastructure bodies, to identify and implement measures to improve the London-wide strategic coordination of advice services, including debt advice.

Life Expectancy

Tony Devenish: What action will you be taking through your health inequalities work to address London’s reduction in life expectancy due to the COVID-19 pandemic?

The Mayor: The interim life expectancy data to which you refer highlights the devastating impact of COVID-19, with thousands of Londoners’ lives lost to the virus. It shows a stark decline in life expectancy for both males and females. Of further concern is that this interim data also points towards a widening of the gap between the least and most deprived within London.
The need for action is urgent, and has already begun, with the recovery programme having a considerable focus on health and inequality. I will shortly publish a refreshed implementation plan for the London Health Inequalities Strategy, which will outline what partners across the health and care system, including myself, are doing to tackle health inequalities now and over the next few years. This is a marathon and not a sprint. It will take long-term commitment and continuing action as we build and respond to the evidence – including what we are hearing from Londoners - to make a real difference and start to turn the tide on health inequalities.

TfL Customer Service

Tony Devenish: When Andy Byford became Commissioner in June 2020, he confirmed one of his top priorities was better customer services. A constituent of mine recently wrote to me as follows:

“I wanted to draw to your attention the very poor service I have received from TfL in applying for an Oyster Zip concessionary card for my 16-year old son. Their website is not working properly and would not let me pay the £20 fee. On 2 September I called them and after a very long wait I paid the fee by telephone. The card was still not issued. When I called again today, I was informed that there was no record of my payment (despite it appearing as a debit on my bank statement), and that the card could only be issued if I made a further £20 payment by telephone. I am very mindful of all the London teenagers who rely on concessionary travel to get to schools and colleges, and of all the parents who would simply not be in a position to make additional £20 payments or spend hours trying to sort this out with TfL. This is just not good enough, and I trust that you can make appropriate representations to get the issue addressed.”

Do you agree with my constituent that this customer service is not good enough? If so, what will you do to ensure it does not happen again?

The Mayor: Transport for London (TfL) has recently upgraded its online system and migrated customers onto its new platform. I understand that overall this has gone very smoothly but I am aware that that some users, like your constituent, have experienced occasional issues with the updated website. TfL has worked to resolve any issues as quickly as possible. Whilst we apologise to the small number of people have been adversely impacted, these system changes will make it easier to apply for and manage Zip photocards.
I have asked TfL’s Government Relations team to contact you for the details to enable them to look into this matter further for you and your constituent.

London Ambulance Service Estates Strategy (1)

Tony Devenish: Are you concerned at the pace of the London Ambulance Estates strategy and what have you done to raise your concerns?

The Mayor: In 2019 the London Ambulance Service published its estates vision and, in June 2021, shared with me its ambition to begin implementation, through the development of the first pioneer Ambulance Deployment Centre in north east London.
More recently I understand the Trust has reviewed its plans and decided to pause its vision implementation to give time to consider fully the impact on care, to engage with the public and other partners on proposed changes, and to prioritise operational response to anticipated winter demand.
I am meeting the new Chief Executive Officer and Chair of LAS shortly and will discuss the estates strategy with them at that meeting.

London Ambulance Service Estates Strategy (2)

Tony Devenish: What is your understanding of how the LAS estates strategy has progressed since 2016 and what you have contributed to the strategy in this time?

The Mayor: Please see my response to Mayor’s Question 2021/3978.

LFB Performance Targets (9)

Anne Clarke: The LFB Corporate Performance Digest - Q1 2021/22 has no targets relating to the percentage of the LFB’s top earners that are a) women; b) disabled; c) LGBTQI+. Can you explain why no targets currently exist and what plans, if any, you have for introducing targets?

The Mayor: As part of the report on additional corporate indicators approved by the Governance, Performance and Audit Committee in September 2017, it was agreed that in supporting the London Safety Plan, action (defined as context measures) should be taken rather than having set targets on areas the Brigade wanted to approve. London Fire Brigade is committed to continuing to improve the diversity of its workforce at all levels as set out in the Togetherness Strategy and will be reviewing its diversity targets as part of the development of the Community Risk Management Plan which will replace the existing London Safety Plan.

Energy prices (1)

Marina Ahmad: What impact will the increase in gas prices have on Londoners this winter?

The Mayor: Sadly, record high energy prices will plunge many London households into fuel poverty this winter. I estimate that over 75,000 more London households could become fuel poor following the recent price rises. If, as expected, the energy price cap is increased in April many more households will fall into fuel poverty.

Fire safety defects (2)

Anne Clarke: In December 2020 you proposed that the Government introduce a £3 billion levy on major private property developers that could fund vital cladding replacement work on properties across London. What further lobbying have you undertaken since then and what response, if any, has the Government provided to your proposals?

The Mayor: My developer levy proposal recognised the role industry has played in the building safety crisis. I did not receive an official response from government on this, but following my proposal in December 2020, the government proposed a Residential Property Development Tax (RPDT) and the Building Safety Levy. I welcome these two mechanisms but do not think they will be enough to help government raise the necessary funds to support the scale of remediation works needed. I have responded to both of the government’s consultations on these measures.
Over the last year, I have continued advocating for government to introduce protections for leaseholders, namely through the Building Safety Bill. My efforts in this area will continue until we have a commitment from government not to place an undue burden on leaseholders.

LFB Performance Targets (1)

Anne Clarke: The LFB Corporate Performance Digest - Q1 2021/22 has a target to “Improve the ethnic diversity (BAME) of each trainee firefighter intake” which was introduced in 2017/18. Is the current target of 25% appropriate and what plans, if any, do you have to make the service more reflective of London?

The Mayor: This target was set as part of the London Safety Plan in 2017 and progress in this area is continually reviewed. London Fire Brigade (LFB) has exceeded this target through increasing the proportion of Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic trainee firefighters in each intake. This has been above 25 per cent since Q2 (July – September) 2020/21 and was 33.3 per cent in Q4 (January – March) 2020/21. In Q1 (April – June) 2021/22 the figure was 35.5 per cent as the remainder of trainees progressed through training which had commenced prior to the recruitment freeze, in place since April 2021. LFB is committed to continuing to improve the diversity of its workforce as set out in the Togetherness Strategy and will be reviewing these targets as part of the development of the Community Risk Management Plan.

LFB Performance Targets (2)

Anne Clarke: The LFB Corporate Performance Digest - Q1 2021/22 has a target to “Improve the gender diversity (Woman) of each trainee firefighter intake” which was introduced in 2017/18. Is the current target of 18% appropriate and what plans, if any, do you have to increase the target?

The Mayor: This target was set as part of the London Safety Plan in 2017 and progress in this area is continually reviewed. London Fire Brigade (LFB) has exceeded this target through increasing the proportion of female trainee firefighters. Intake has been above 18 per cent since Q1 (April – June) 2020/21, with the most recent figure being 21.9 per cent as at Q1 (April – June) 2021/22. LFB is committed to continuing to improve the diversity of its workforce as set out in the Togetherness Strategy and will be reviewing these targets as part of the development of the Community Risk Management Plan.

LFB Performance Targets (3)

Anne Clarke: The LFB Corporate Performance Digest - Q1 2021/22 has a target on “Gender diversity (men) of control staff”. The target was 26% in 2017/18, increased to 29% in 2018/19, increased to 32% in 2019/20 and increased again to 35% in 2020/21. Why is this target being constantly increased when other targets on inclusion have remained static since 2017?

The Mayor: When the current London Safety Plan was approved in 2017, only headline targets were agreed as part of the Plan. The former London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority Governance, Performance and Audit Committee agreed a series of additional performance measures to support the Plan. These additional measures are set out in report FEP2765 presented to the Committee in November 2017 and available via the LFB website.
The targets for all the additional measures for the (original) four years of the Plan (to 2020/21) are set out in an appendix to report FEP2765 and show targets increasing for Corporate (CO) Indicator 8 "Gender diversity (men) of control staff" as reflected in the Corporate Performance Digest. This increasing target reflected the view of officers at the time (in 2017) of the potential improvement in performanceachievableover the period.
LFB is committed to continuing to improve the diversity of its workforce as set out intheTogetherness Strategy. LFB will be reviewingdiversitytargets as part of the development of the Community Risk Management Plan.

LFB Performance Targets (4)

Anne Clarke: The LFB Corporate Performance Digest - Q1 2021/22 has a target on “Ethnic diversity (BAME) of FRS staff top earners” which was introduced in 2017/18. Is the current target of 16% appropriate and what plans, if any, do you have to increase the target?

The Mayor: This target was set as part of the London Safety Plan in 2017 andprogress in this area iscontinually reviewed.The percentage of Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic staff in the FRS top earners group remained the sameat13.1 per centin bothQ4(January – March) 2020/21 andQ1 (April – July) 2021/22.London Fire Brigade is committed to continuing to improve the diversity of its workforce as set out intheTogetherness Strategy and will be reviewingdiversitytargets as part of the development of the Community Risk Management Plan.

LFB Performance Targets (5)

Anne Clarke: The LFB Corporate Performance Digest - Q1 2021/22 has a target on “Pay ratio between highest and median salary for permanent staff” which was introduced in 2017/18. Is the current target of 6 appropriate and what plans, if any, do you have to reduce the ratio?

The Mayor: The figure of 6 within the Corporate Performance Digest for the pay ratio between highest and median salary is not a ‘target’ to be achieved, but a long-term maximum figure that should not be exceeded. This is appropriate given the salary range for the London Fire Commissioner, which this figure is based on, andthecurrent median salary. Some movement above the 2020/21 figure of 4.99 is expected for 2021/22 and future years. The figure was 5.4 in 2017/18 but should not exceed 6 in the long-term.

LFB Performance Targets (6)

Anne Clarke: The LFB Corporate Performance Digest - Q1 2021/22 has a target on “Gender pay gap - all staff (median)” which was introduced in 2017/18. Is the current target of plus or minus 3% appropriate and what plans, if any, do you have to change the target?

The Mayor: This target was set as part of the additional corporate indicators agreed by the Governance, Performance and Audit Committee (FEP2765) for the London Safety Plan in 2017.The Gender Pay Gaphas been within this target for 2018/19 and 2019/20 at-2.84 per cent and -2.69 per cent respectively.London Fire Brigade is committed to continuing to improve the diversity of its workforce as set out in the Togetherness Strategy and will be reviewing diversity targets as part of the development of the Community Risk Management Plan.

LFB Performance Targets (7)

Anne Clarke: The LFB Corporate Performance Digest - Q1 2021/22 has a target on “Gender pay gap - all staff (median)” but no figures are presented for 2019/20 or 2020/21. Can you explain why and confirm when figures will be provided?

The Mayor: London Fire Brigade (LFB)figuresfor 2019/2020weresubmittedtothe GLA and have now been publishedalong withthe rest of the GLA Group.The2019/20gender pay gap for LFB is reported at -2.69 per cent. The 2020/21 figures have been submitted to the GLA, along with an action plan, and will be also published in due course.

MPS Facial Recognition System (2)

Caroline Russell: How many facial recognition searches have been conducted on images collected by National Police Air Service (NPAS)?

The Mayor: This question is best directed at West Yorkshire Police as the lead force for the National Police Air Service.

MPS Facial Recognition System (1)

Caroline Russell: How many images are now stored by the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) on its Facial Recognition System and how many different individuals does this include?

The Mayor: The MPS Facial Recognition System is not used to store images. For Live Facial Recognition (LFR), a bespoke watchlist is imported into the LFR system for each deployment. The LFR system is securely wiped following each deployment.

Gypsy and Traveller sites

Siân Berry: You have stated that capital funding is being made available through the Mayor’s Affordable Homes Programme to remodel existing Gypsy and Traveller sites and pitches in need of refurbishment or build new sites. Could you outline, for both the Affordable Homes Programme 2016-23 and 2021-26, how much funding has been allocated to date, the number of sites by local authority, and whether the funding was for refurbishment or new build?

The Mayor: The table below shows the number of projects that have been allocated funding via the 2016-23 programme. There are no allocations to remodel existing Gypsy and Traveller sites from the first round of the 2021-26 programme. Both programmes are open to CME.
Location
No. of Projects
Refurbishment
			£
New Build
			£
Southwark
4
£1,738,258
£0
Sutton
1
£0
£1,680,000

Total: 5
£1,738,258
£1,680,000

Supported and specialist housing

Siân Berry: In 2020-21, there were 423 starts and 256 completions for supported and specialist housing under the Affordable Homes Programme 2016-23. Could you provide these numbers broken down by local authority?

The Mayor: Please see below table showing starts and completions achieved between April 2021 and June 2021 for the supported and specialist housing programme by local authority.
Starts on Site
Completions
Other Affordable Rent
Social Rent
			(and LAR to
			benchmarks)
Total Affordable Starts
Other Affordable Rent
Social Rent
			(and LAR to
			benchmarks)
Total Affordable Completions
Barking and Dagenham
1
0
1
0
0
0
Barnet
76
0
76
0
0
0
Brent
3
3
6
0
0
0
Bromley
0
43
43
0
0
0
Camden
40
5
45
0
3
3
Croydon
0
7
7
0
0
0
Ealing
1
4
5
0
0
0
Enfield
9
11
20
0
5
5
Greenwich
2
0
2
0
0
0
Hackney
18
0
18
28
0
28
Haringey
0
32
32
0
0
0
Harrow
1
60
61
0
0
0
Havering
1
0
1
0
0
0
Hillingdon
3
0
3
0
0
0
Hounslow
2
18
20
0
0
0
Islington
0
3
3
146
0
146
Kensington and Chelsea
0
0
0
0
11
11
Kingston upon Thames
1
0
1
0
0
0
Lambeth
1
0
1
40
0
40
Lewisham
2
21
23
0
0
0
Merton
0
2
2
0
0
0
Newham
0
12
12
0
4
4
Redbridge
0
18
18
0
0
0
Southwark
0
2
2
0
6
6
Sutton
0
15
15
0
0
0
Tower Hamlets
0
2
2
0
1
1
Waltham Forest
0
3
3
0
2
2
Wandsworth
1
0
1
0
10
10
Total
162
261
423
214
42
256

PLACE update (2)

Siân Berry: Thank you for your answer to my question 2021/0462. Could you: a) update me on plans for installation of PLACE (Pan-London Accommodation Collaborative Enterprise) homes in Tower Hamlets, b) tell me how many of the 200 precision-manufactured homes have been installed and where, and c) tell me what plans there are, if any, to expand on the number of PLACE homes in London?

The Mayor: There have been a few delays in the delivery of PLACE homes in Tower Hamlets, and my officers are in frequent dialogue with borough to ensure delivery.
Tower Hamlets have placed an order for 16 units at Landon Walk. This has planning consent. A further 16 units are earmarked to come online in another part of Tower Hamlets that are potentially to be on land leased from Clarion Housing Association. This does not yet have planning consent. The borough is currently in discussion with another borough about a potential further 28 units.

Green Homes Grant Local Authority Delivery scheme

Siân Berry: With regard to the Green Homes Grant Local Authority Delivery scheme (MD2775) can you provide me with details of what improvements were made by the five social landlords to improve energy efficiency: how the work was commissioned and who carried it out; what data is being collated to examine the effectiveness of the measures and whether they both save the tenants money on fuel bills and cut carbon emissions?

The Mayor: The GLA-led consortium has recently completed works under the first Green Homes Grant LAD scheme, LAD1a, and continues to progress works under the second, LAD1b. The grant funding was provided with conditions regarding applicable homes, the type of measures and quality of the installations.
For eligible homes, the opportunity for improvements in energy efficiency was approached on a fabric first basis. This provided for insulation, glazing improvements, improved electric heating, and solar photovoltaic panels.
Works were commissioned by the social landlords and carried out by suitably qualified and competent contractors. These contractors were also required to meet strict PAS (Publicly Available Specification) standards for assessment, management, installation and post-completion recording of the works.
Data for carbon savings are recorded using an official metric to capture average savings for installed measures based on property type.

Estate ballot process review (2)

Siân Berry: You have not provided clear guidelines on the process of resident ballots on estates facing demolition plans, leaving open the potential for unfair conduct by landlords. What plans do you have to provide guidelines to ensure, for example fair publicity and secret voting in every ballot?

The Mayor: Paragraphs 8.5.2 to 8.5.17 of my resident ballot requirement provide clear guidance on conducting a ballot. In particular, they make clear that ballots must be conducted by an independent body with expertise in ensuring that ballots are conducted properly.
Both the landlord and the independent body must sign and submit to the GLA a checklist to confirm that the ballot complied with the requirements of my funding condition. In doing so, the independent body must also confirm that there are no issues of concern to report in relation to distribution of the landlord offer, voter registration and identification process; and/or recording and counting of votes.

Estate ballot process review (1)

Siân Berry: In your 2021 manifesto you committed to reviewing how your policy for ballots before major estate regeneration plans get funding is working. As part of this review will you be asking for feedback from residents on all estates that have held ballots so far, including Love Lane in Tottenham, where complaints have been made about landlord pressure, lack of secrecy over ballots and other intimidatory practices, and Gilbeys Yard in Camden, where the ballot is planned to being re-run without significant changes being made to the landlord offer?

The Mayor: My resident ballot requirement makes clear that ballots must be undertaken by an independent body with the expertise to ensure that they are conducted properly and deliver accurate results. Both the landlord and the independent body are required to sign and submit to the GLA a checklist to confirm the ballot complied with the requirements of my funding condition.
My 2021 manifesto stated: “I’ll review how this is working to make sure ways aren’t being deliberately found to avoid having a ballot.” Since my re-election, I have published two notes to assist my housing team with implementing my resident ballot requirement. These are the product of a review of the feedback received in the first three years of implementation.
Where a landlord conducts a further ballot after residents have voted against a landlord offer, the requirement for a positive vote ensures that regeneration will only go ahead if estate residents support revised plans. If they remain opposed to the landlord offer, they can use their decisive say to reject it.

Climate Change

Tony Devenish: You gave a speech on 23rd September on the environment, you spoke of the need for all of us to “walk the walk, not just talk the talk”. The Times published an interview with you on 25th September, where you admitted your family still had an “old petrol car” which you will “trade in for an electric car when you eventually change it”. Is that showing climate leadership?

The Mayor: My family car meets Euro VI standards and is therefore ULEZ compliant. As I said in the Times interview, we don’t use it much – I use public transport, walk and cycle, and travel in a police vehicle when I have to. When we do change our car, we will trade it in for an electric vehicle.
I was elected to be the greenest Mayor that London has ever had and I am committed to building on the successes of my first term and continuing to tackle the twin dangers of air pollution and the climate emergency.
I’m expanding the Ultra Low Emission later this month, to encourage more Londoners to choose cleaner vehicles and greener forms of transport. The scheme is purposefully designed to maximise the benefits for Londoners and minimise the cost to drivers. This means drivers don’t need to buy brand-new or electric vehicles to have a positive impact on air quality and climate change.
The best way to reduce air pollution and carbon emissions is to switch from private vehicles to more sustainable modes. This is why I’m continuing to invest in walking, cycling and public transport to meet my target of 80 per cent of all trips in the city being made by these modes by 2031.

Helicopter noise

Tony Devenish: Residents in Pimlico are reporting that helicopter noise is becoming worse. What action will you take to ensure residents get some peace? Will you urge the Met to fast-track drones as an alternative to helicopters?

The Mayor: I am disappointed to hear that residents have been experiencing increases in helicopter noise and the disturbance that results. As I stated in my response to Mayor’s Question 2021/2192 in May, the regulations governing helicopter flights over London are too weak but remain the responsibility of the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) and the Government. We have previously raised our concerns, including through relevant consultations, and will continue to press on this troubling issue.
I would also caution against treating drones as a panacea. Drones are not without their own challenges and it is essential that the CAA and Government ensure a robust regulatory framework for their operation. The National Police Air Service (NPAS) is one of many helicopter operators who fly over London.The NPAS is researching the wider use of drones to support policing.

Metropolitan Police Service Estates (1)

Tony Devenish: Can you provide a breakdown of how income received by the sale of Metropolitan Police Service buildings, land and property has been spent? If so, please provide this to cover the last three years.

The Mayor: All capital income received from the sale of MOPAC buildings, land and property is reinvested in capital projects. MOPAC operates a pooled approach to financing its investments. There is no allocation of capital receipts to specific investment projects.
Central Government only provide c£3m p.a. in capital grant which is insufficient to support the scale of investment necessary. I continue to press for the Government to provide a more-long term and stable funding settlement for the police.

London Ambulance Service Estates Strategy (3)

Tony Devenish: Do you think the LAS and LFB joint working could be accelerated in terms of a joint estates strategy? If so, how, and what work have you undertaken to explore this idea?

The Mayor: The GLA is committed to continued and enhanced pan-London emergency services collaboration. London Fire Brigade (LFB) and LAS have held a number of meetings specifically to look at the LAS estates strategy and consider how the LFB can assist with current plans. This includes ongoing work and site visits to explore the feasibility of estate sharing at some fire stations.
I am meeting the new Chief Executive Officer and Chair of the LAS shortly and will discuss the estates strategy with them at that meeting.

Vetting and Conduct in Office (2)

Caroline Pidgeon: Will you take urgent action to review how the Met monitors the behaviour and conduct of serving officers, including their activity on social media and online?

The Mayor: Public trust in our police has been severely damaged and requires urgent rebuilding.
I’ve been clear with the Met Commissioner about the scale of the challenge we face and the change that’s needed. Baroness Casey’s review must look into the wider culture of the Met Police, including issues of misogyny, sexism, racism and homophobia as well as thoroughly examining recruitment, vetting, training, leadership and standards of behaviour among officers and staff.
I welcome the additional resources being allocated to the Professional Standards Directorate by the Commissioner, particularly those focused on reviewing all current allegations of violence against women and girls by serving police officers.
I will continue to play my full part in holding the Met Police to account on behalf of Londoners and my Deputy Mayor for Policing and Crime will continue her detailed oversight discussions with senior officers within the Met responsible for Professionalism.

Vetting and Conduct in Office (1)

Caroline Pidgeon: The Met Police have accepted that vetting was not conducted correctly in the case of Wayne Couzens, the officer who brutally murdered Sarah Everard in March. In our exchange in July (MQT 2021/2211), when I raised numerous recent cases of serious officer misconduct, you committed to sharing with me the steps being taken to improve vetting in the Met. Will you now commit to working with the Met to urgently review vetting practices within the organisation, which have also recently been heavily criticised by the Daniel Morgan Independent Panel?

The Mayor: The Vetting Code of Practice, issued by the College of Policing, sets out the vetting standards by which all forces must adhere. The Code of Practice was last issued in 2017. The Commissioner is responsible for ensuring those standards are applied within the MPS, in line with Authorised Professional Practice, last issued in March 2021, which supports the Code of Practice.
I understand the Commissioner has already requested that HMICFRS look at Vetting, as part of the counter-corruption inquiry which they are already conducting in the MPS.
I welcome the Home Secretary’s announcement of a thematic inspection by HMICFRS into vetting, which will inform the detail of the non-statutory public inquiry that has been commissioned.
Baroness Casey’s review - which I welcome and support - will look into the wider culture of the MPS, including issues of misogyny, sexism, racism and homophobia as well as thoroughly examining recruitment, vetting, training, leadership and standards of behaviour among officers and staff.
I’ve been clear with the MPS Commissioner about the scale of the challenge we face and the change that’s needed, and I will continue to play my full part in holding the MPS to account on behalf of Londoners.

LFB Funding (1)

Anne Clarke: What is the right level of Government funding required to ensure there are no frontline cuts to the LFB?

The Mayor: The right level of Government funding for London Fire Brigade (LFB) will never be an absolute number as London requires a fire and rescue service that is dynamic and able to respond to the current and future risks that it faces within a changing and challenging environment. Funding levels will need to reflect current and future risks faced by the Brigade and an appropriate balance of prevention and response resources to address these.
The work currently underway on LFB’s Community Risk Management Plan (CRMP) and Target Operating Model (TOM) are key elements in defining these risks and the Brigade’s model of service delivery. These will then help to ensure that LFB uses its resources efficiently and effectively and is best placed to serve and protect London and Londoners. I meet the London Fire Commissioner regularly to discuss these issues and will continue to do so.

Building Safety Fund

Anne Clarke: How many grants have been made from this fund to date? Please provide a breakdown since the funds began, showing the size of grant and date of grant award.

The Mayor: As of 6 October 2021, my Building Safety Team has approved 77 grant payments from the Building Safety Fund totalling £48,298,584. This consists of £41,562,712 in pre-tender support, and £6,735,872 as the first payment of the Grant Funding Agreement.
Please see table below for a breakdown.
Grant total (£)
Date of authorisation
167,267
Oct 15, 2020
515,104
Dec 9, 2020
571,988
Jan 7, 2021
219,898
Jan 11, 2021
1,764,874
Jan 13, 2021
463,175
Jan 22, 2021
455,989
Jan 27, 2021
131,519
Feb 4, 2021
628,330
Feb 12, 2021
60,301
Feb 24, 2021
323,825
Feb 24, 2021
1,801,940
Feb 25, 2021
465,657
Feb 25, 2021
227,348
Feb 25, 2021
274,178
Feb 25, 2021
230,728
Mar 8, 2021
479,823
Mar 10, 2021
372,809
Mar 11, 2021
398,934
Mar 17, 2021
728,716
Mar 17, 2021
88,023
Mar 30, 2021
460,607
Mar 30, 2021
347,273
Apr 6, 2021
916,157
Apr 7, 2021
207,214
Apr 8, 2021
1,105,267
Apr 8, 2021
944,089
Apr 14, 2021
720,162
Apr 14, 2021
235,571
Apr 16, 2021
2,220,132
Apr 16, 2021
1,083,674
Apr 19, 2021
470,328
Apr 21, 2021
292,957
Apr 21, 2021
212,888
May 5, 2021
80,956
May 7, 2021
1,388,588
May 14, 2021
1,798,652
May 19, 2021
157,071
May 19, 2021
246,495
May 24, 2021
1,003,815
Jun 4, 2021
228,782
Jun 8, 2021
783,091
Jun 11, 2021
91,918
Jun 15, 2021
335,660
Jun 16, 2021
170,400
Jun 21, 2021
628,113
Jun 28, 2021
162,337
Jun 28, 2021
142,199
Jun 30, 2021
1,132,684.00
Jul 8, 2021
110,111.00
Jul 15, 2021
375,402.00
Jul 23, 2021
393,939.00
Jul 23, 2021
267,276.00
Jul 27, 2021
497,725.00
Jul 28, 2021
495,864.00
Jul 28, 2021
215,192.00
Jul 28, 2021
472,520.00
Jul 28, 2021
425,443.00
Jul 28, 2021
100,000.00
Aug 4, 2021
311,927.00
Aug 10, 2021
314,659.00
Aug 11, 2021
279,364.00
Aug 12, 2021
1,427,461.00
Aug 17, 2021
889,482.00
Aug 24, 2021
606,617.00
Aug 24, 2021
4,613,623.00
Aug 24, 2021
2,369,705.00
Sep 15, 2021
558,041.00
Sep 15, 2021
288,281.00
Sep 20, 2021
154,202.00
Sep 20, 2021
1,051,044.00
Sep 23, 2021
224,842.00
Sep 23, 2021
159,707.00
Sep 24, 2021
1,335,694.00
Sep 24, 2021
655,880.00
Sep 29, 2021
308,483.00
Sep 30, 2021
1,458,594.00
Sep 30, 2021

Waking Watch Relief Fund

Anne Clarke: How many grants have been made from this fund to date? Please provide a breakdown since the funds began, showing the size of grant and date of grant award.

The Mayor: As at 4 October 2021, my Waking Watch Relief Fund team has approved eight grant payments from the Waking Watch Relief Fund totalling £694,987.
Grant total (£)
Date of authorisation
£82,368
10/09/2021
£17,040
10/09/2021
£277,888
25/08/2021
£68,782
22/09/2021
£103,040
24/09/2021
£82,658
24/09/2021
£37,883
24/09/2021
£25,328
04/10/2021

London Cable Car (1)

Len Duvall: Is the London Cable Car being used as part of the #LetsDoLondon campaign?

The Mayor: The Emirates Cable car is featured on the Let’s Do London hub on Visit London as one of London’s top 10 attractions. It has been featured in marketing for the Let’s Do London campaign across the Visit London website and social channels.
Transport for London have also run adverts featuring the cable car which include the #LetsDoLondon message.

NHS powers devolution (2)

Onkar Sahota: Do you believe that the NHS would be better served if more powers over health were handed to the capital? If you do, how would this work in practice?

The Mayor: Please see my response to Mayor’s Question 2021/4311.

Policing in Lewisham (4)

Len Duvall: What analysis has been made of trends in weapon enabled personal robbery across London?

The Mayor: The MPS has informed me that, based on police records, there continues to be strong reductions in personal robbery offences in comparison to previous years. Offence volumes in the 12 months to September 2021 were 29% below the same period last year and 40% below the same period in 2019. Currently 24% of robbery offences in the MPS area are knife enabled with 2% resulting in a knife related injury.
The MPS continues to actively monitor robbery trends with Operation Venice providing daily reporting of offences on each Borough Command Unit (BCU). This data is analysed for early identification of linked series offences, for example by modus operandi, description of offenders, and location. Most of these linked series are taken by the Op. Venice team who specialise in cross border prolific robbery offending.
In addition, the MPS uses detailed analysis to identify peak periods for robbery, and plans and prepares bespoke robbery initiatives accordingly. These can feed into much larger violence reduction plans.
Tactical robbery meetings are attended by all BCU robbery leads, and strategic robbery group meetings are attended by representatives from the BCU Senior Leadership Teams and chaired by Commander Murray, the lead for violence.

LFB Culture Change Review

Anne Clarke: Following MQ 2021/3074, can you confirm who the Chair of the review is?

The Mayor: Interviews for the Chair of the Culture Review are being held in late October, following which an appointment will be made.

Review of Key Areas of Officer Conduct and Recruitment in the Met

Caroline Pidgeon: Following the public concern and questions emanating from the tragic murder of Sarah Everard, as well as other recent cases of serious officer misconduct, will the Met be undertaking a comprehensive review of recruitment, vetting, conduct in office and culture within the Met leading to measurable actions?

The Mayor: The Commissioner has announced that Baroness Casey of Blackstock will lead an independent review into the MPS’s culture and standards. I am supportive of this as it is clear that public trust in the police has been severely damaged and requires urgent rebuilding. Baroness Casey’s review will look into the wider culture of the Met Police, including issues of misogyny, sexism, racism and homophobia as well as thoroughly examining recruitment, vetting, training, leadership and standards of behaviour among officers and staff.
I also support the inquiry announced by the Home Secretary, Priti Patel, which will ensure that the failures that led to a serving police officer killing Sarah Everard can never happen again.
I’ve been clear with the Commissioner about the scale of the challenge we face and the change that’s needed, and I will continue to play my full part in holding the MPS to account on behalf of Londoners.

NHS Pressure and the Winter Plan (3)

Onkar Sahota: Out of the £5.4 billion being invested by the Government into the NHS over the next six months, as part of its Winter Plan, do you know what portion of this is being allocated to London’s NHS trusts?

The Mayor: Following the Government announcement on 6 September I understand from the NHS in London that the amount allocated for the second half of the year is expected to be sufficient to enable the NHS to continue to support staff and patients within London’s NHS trusts. I have been unable to verify the exact allocation to London.
As you know I regularly meet with the leadership of the NHS in London and willcontinue todiscuss NHS funding levels with them. Where necessary I will continue to lobby central Government to ensure that the capital receives the funding it requires to deliver the world class NHS service that Londoners deserve.

LFB Funding (2)

Anne Clarke: What level of funding, tools and equipment does the LFB require to keep London safe?

The Mayor: The level of funding, tools and equipment that London Fire Brigade (LFB) requires to keep London safe will never be an absolute level as London requires a fire and rescue service that is dynamic and able to respond to the current and future risks that it faces within a changing and challenging environment. Funding levels will need to reflect current and future risks faced by the Brigade and an appropriate balance of prevention and response resources to address these.
The work currently underway on the Community Risk Management Plan (CRMP) and the Target Operating Model (TOM) are key elements in defining these risks and the model of service delivery. These will then help ensure that the LFB uses it resources efficiently and effectively and is best placed to serve and protect London and Londoners. I meet the London Fire Commissioner regularly to discuss these issues and will continue to do so.

Hammersmith Bridge Ferry

Nicholas Rogers: Please give an update on the status of the Hammersmith Bridge ferry and the planning permissions associated with it.

The Mayor: The bridge’s owner, London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham (LBHF), decided to re-open it for walking, cycling and river traffic on 17 July 2021. As requested by the government, Transport for London (TfL) is continuing to work on plans for a temporary ferry service alongside the principal contractor appointed to operate the ferry, Uber Boat by Thames Clipper (UBTC). TfL continues to work closely with all members of the Hammersmith Bridge Taskforce to progress the service, including the planning permissions associated with it.

LFB Pensions

Anne Clarke: There is a £25 million a year additional pensions cost that LFB faces, which is a consequence of Government action. What estimates, if any, have been made on the level of this additional cost in the coming years?

The Mayor: The Firefighter Pension Scheme (FPS) valuation in 2016 included changes to the rates used to value FPS liabilities and led to an increase in pensions costs of about £25 million per annum. This increase in cost is paid for by employer contributions to the FPS and LFB expect these contributions to remain at about this level in the coming years, assuming consistent employer contribution rates and firefighter numbers. Government grant funding has been received to meet approximately 85 per cent of this additional cost.

Closure of sexual health clinics in London

Onkar Sahota: What is your assessment of the impact of the closure of several of the capital’s sexual health clinics on Londoners in recent years?

The Mayor: The London Sexual Health Transformation Programme was a collaboration of 27 London boroughs that worked together up to 2017 to transform and modernise London’s sexual health services. As a result of their engagement with patients and clinicians, they recommissioned services based on what was needed at a sub-regional level, and this did result in some clinics closing, but with others opening in areas of greater need. Additionally, the new London sexual health e-service was established, allowing Londoners to access sexual health testing and treatment online, and this proved to be an invaluable resource during lockdown when many sexual health clinics were closed as NHS clinicians were redeployed to Covid wards. More Londoners than ever want to access sexual health services online, preferring the convenience and privacy this provides.

Kilburn Square Estate response

Siân Berry: Residents of Kilburn Square Co-Op have been informed in a letter from Brent Council that their proposal for developing the Kilburn Square estate will now be: “adapted in collaboration with residents.” The letter also says: “We have also received feedback on the current scheme from […], the Mayor of London’s office.” Will you publish this correspondence?

The Mayor: I understand that last month Brent Council issued a newsletter stating that the proposed design for the new homes on the Kilburn Square Estate was going to be changed. The newsletter also mentioned that the council would work with the residents of Kilburn Square to ensure the new homes are as good as they can be for the community. My guide to estate regeneration sets out the importance of consultation and engagement with residents being transparent, inclusive, responsive and meaningful, and in this context, I welcome the council’s decision to review the scheme and work with residents in taking it forward.
I have not assessed the planning merits of the proposal through the referable process as it was at pre-application stage. However, in October 2020, GLA officers issued a pre-application advice note on the scheme. Pre-application advice is a discretionary service that is offered by the GLA Planning Service as well as Local Planning Authorities - it is not mandatory for developers to use the service and the advice given is treated as confidential because it relates to a proposal that may or may not end up as a planning application.

Embodied carbon in construction

Siân Berry: The recent report from the National Engineering Policy Centre and Royal Academy of Engineering, Decarbonising Construction: building a new net zero industry, includes this recommendation: “The construction sector should adopt the same carbon emission reduction targets as the national targets of 68 per cent and 78 per cent by 2030 and 2035 respectively, compared to 1990 levels. These recommended percentage reductions should include embodied carbon of built infrastructure, including that of imported construction materials, not just the scope of emissions included in the UK carbon budget.” Will you consider rewriting the Circular Economy Statements Guide advising developers how can they meet these targets?

The Mayor: Policy SI 2 of the London Plan requires development proposals referable to the Mayor to calculate and reduce whole life-cycle carbon (WLC) emissions (i.e. both operational and embodied emissions and so includes those from imported construction materials). There is already WLC Assessment Guidance in place to support this London Plan policy which explains how to calculate, reduce and report WLC emissions.
The London Plan requires all major developments to meet a net zero target which applies to operational emissions. We don’t currently have sufficient data to set specific targets for embodied carbon emissions, however, the WLC Assessment Guidance includes benchmarks that developments will be assessed against. Through the implementation of this policy we will be able to gather data that can be used to inform targets in the future.

Loss of green spaces in housing estates

Siân Berry: The London Green Spaces Commission Report states: “we need to recognise that parks are part of a wider network of public realm, which includes spaces such as civic squares, streets and green areas in housing estates.”
What are you doing to protect residents from infill proposals that remove green space, playgrounds and sports facilities?

The Mayor: My London Plan ensures that London’s network of green and open spaces, and green features in the built environment, are protected and enhanced. The Plan establishes a framework for green infrastructure to be planned, designed and managed in an integrated way to achieve multiple benefits.
Using this framework, boroughs should identify the types and locations of green infrastructure and open spaces that are protected in their Local Plans, using evidence on existing spaces and current and future needs to plan for green infrastructure, play and sports facilities.
Individual cases need to be assessed against the relevant local designations and protections. In some cases, it may be possible to reconfigure spaces to achieve more much-needed housing alongside improvements to open spaces and facilities. This could include creating gains for biodiversity by providing additional greening such as tree planting and the provision of additional or improved sports and play facilities.

Shading of existing solar installations

Siân Berry: A constituent has contacted me regarding the problem of planning applications that would cause shading on existing neighbouring solar panels. It appears there is no guidance in the London Plan – or local authority Local Plans – to consider these impacts in planning , in contrast to the ‘agent of change’ principles you have introduced for noise. Will you bring in such a policy to help Londoners and community organisations making investments in solar panels?

The Mayor: I support the retrofitting of solar technology on existing buildings as well as installation of solar panels on new developments. My London Plan has helped to drive this and Policy D9 Part C (2f) requires that tall buildings avoid having a significant detrimental effect on solar energy generation on adjoining buildings.
Some forms of development that can cause overshadowing of solar panels, such as loft extensions, can happen through permitted development so may not require planning permission from the local authority.
It wouldn’t be right to prevent the creation of new dwellings through extensions or remove Londoners’ rights to create more space for their families. This can be a sustainable way to provide new housing and to enable thermal improvements to existing homes, both of which can help reduce carbon emissions.
My Solar Together London programme has resulted in solar PV being installed in over 1,000 homes. As part of any future rounds of Solar Together London, I will make sure that customers are aware of the risks of potential future development so that the location of panels can be considered to minimise future overshadowing.

Beam Park Station

Siân Berry: It has been reported that funding to deliver Beam Park railway station has been cut by the Department for Transport. Can you confirm this, detail exactly what has been cut and what impact this will have on the delivery of housing at Beam Park?

The Mayor: The Department for Transport (DfT) recently wrote to GLA officers to confirm that it was not supportive of the delivery of Beam Park station. GLA officers are in ongoing discussions with DfT to find a way forward. My Deputy Mayors for Housing and Residential Development, and Transport have raised the issue with relevant ministers.
DfT is not providing funding for the project and therefore funding has not been withdrawn. The GLA has committed £42 million to the project, including an indemnity to protect DfT against any expected operational deficit. The delivery of the station cannot progress until DfT supports its adoption onto the wider network.
A Grampian condition incorporated in the planning permission for the Beam Park site, approved by the previous Mayor, limits residential occupations to phases 1-3 of the scheme until a new station is operational. This means that 1,522 homes are currently at risk as well as thousands of homes in the surrounding area.

HIV cases in London

Onkar Sahota: What actions are you taking to achieve your aim of ending all new HIV cases in London by 2030 and how are you supporting the recommendations made by the HIV Commission in its landmark report published in November 2020?

The Mayor: As part of the Fast Track Cities Initiative London (FTCI), I am continuing to work closely with NHS England and NHS Improvement London, the new Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID), and local authorities, as well as representatives of the HIV clinician community, HIV VCO sector and people living with HIV. I was delighted that the hard work and collaboration in the partnership led last week to the publication of a new report.
FTCI’s ‘Evolving the care of people living with HIV in London’ sets out actions for Integrated Care Systems (ICSs) to work with their local health and care systems to harmonise HIV prevention, diagnosis, treatment and care, meaning that we as a city will be in an even stronger position to end all HIV cases in London by 2030.

Transport for London advice on protests

Siân Berry: Transport for London (TfL) provided detailed information ahead of the London Marathon on alternative routes and stations to use to avoid disruption for this event. Will you instruct TfL to provide similar advice when demonstrations lead to alterations to services in London?

The Mayor: Transport for London (TfL), working with the event organiser, provides comprehensive information for the London Marathon and other planned events in London to help people understand the road closures and alternative methods of travel.
For demonstrations, TfL works closely with the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) to understand the impact of these, however some of the groups will not inform the MPS of their routes or intention. This makes it increasingly difficult to plan diversions around a location or route that is not shared by the group. These groups used closed social media platforms to plan and execute their demonstrations which makes planning a response very difficult. Some demonstration and march organisers are however willing to engage with the MPS and this helps TfL to plan accordingly and provide some certainty around alternative travel.
For all demonstrations and marches, TfL works closely with the MPS to manage the impact in real-time and try to keep London moving.

Maximising the iREPORTit App Technology

Caroline Pidgeon: The trial of the iREPORTit app, which allowed the public to report online violent extremist content via their smartphones, saw an increase in the number and quality of reports from the public, with the Counter Terrorism Internet Referral Unit considering the pilot to be a success. How is MOPAC working with the Met to enhance and expand the use of this technology into other areas including online hate crime and child sexual exploitation?

The Mayor: Following the successful creation and pilot period of the iREPORTit app (where referrals of online terrorist content to the Counter Terrorism Internet Referral Unit (CTIRU) increased by 15%), management of the app was transferred to the CTIRU itself. Since then, the impact of the app has continued, with the improvement in the quality and quantity of referrals remaining steady.
There is an intention to explore the use of the iREPORTit app in wider policing. MOPAC will continue to work with the Met to look at how new technology can play a part in tackling crime, assisting victims and improving trust and confidence in the police.

Zero emission capable private hire vehicles

Siân Berry: Thank you for your answer to question 2020/1016. How many private hire vehicles (PHVs) currently licensed in London are Zero Emission Capable (ZEC), and what proportion of the fleet do they represent?

The Mayor: Based on September 2021 private hire vehicle (PHV) fleet licensing information, around 14,000 vehicles (18 per cent of the total fleet) are complaint with the PHV ZEC licensing requirement. Of these, more than 4,700 (6 per cent of the total fleet) are pure electric.
To meet the current PHV ZEC licensing requirement a vehicle must:
As a minimum, the vehicle must meet the Euro 6 emissions standard if an internal combustion engine is part of the vehicle specification (i.e. hybrid vehicles).
From 1 January 2023, all PHVs licensed for the first time must be ZEC.
In addition, there are more than 4,300 ZEC taxis, including 102 that are pure electric, equating to 31 per cent of the total taxi fleet.

Social and Private Sector ACM Cladding Remediation Fund

Anne Clarke: How many grants have been made from these funds to date? Please provide a breakdown since the funds began, showing the size of grant; social or private residential; and month of grant award.

The Mayor: As of 01 October 2021, the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) has approved £148 million of funding for the remediation of buildings in London through the Private Sector ACM Cladding Remediation Fund. 123 payments from the Private Sector ACM Cladding Remediation Fund have been authorised. In total, £31,160,409 has been paid out to date.It should be noted that most buildings under this programme follow a monthly payment structure.
As of 01 October 2021, DLUHC has allocated £208 million for the remediation of buildings in London through the Social Sector ACM Cladding Remediation Fund. 82 payments have been authorised. In total, £118,499,397 has been paid out to date. It should be noted that grant is paid in two tranches for this programme – 80 per cent and 20 per cent.
Please see tables below for a breakdown of grants paid.

Impact of retirements on the LFB

Anne Clarke: How resilient is the LFB to the potential of a large number of staff retiring in May?

The Mayor: London Fire Brigade (LFB) has been closely monitoring the potential impact of the pension remedy and this has been reflected in the Corporate Risk Register, with relevant controls put in place. LFB has been working through a number of workforce planning scenarios to assess and understand the potential impact of the pension remedy on skills, rank vacancies, and diversity of the workforce. LFB has also set up working groups to look at areas where they anticipate a significant skills gap to find temporary or permanent solutions to fill these gaps.

Support and advice from the LFB

Anne Clarke: How is the LFB ensuring that firefighters are adequately trained to deal with members of public who are seeking emotional support or advice on next steps after a fire or any other kind of incident?

The Mayor: London Fire Brigade (LFB) firefighters are equipped with skills in order to identify members of public who may require further support following an incident. Advice and support is provided to members of the public by LFB staff in an “After the Fire” booklet which is available in paper or online format. This provides signposting to the individual of support services and, where appropriate, LFB staff can refer members of public through the local Borough Commander to support services offered by the Local Authority.

London Cable Car (3)

Len Duvall: As the previous sponsorship deal draws to a close, how will a new sponsorship deal for the London Cable Car support TfL’s finances?

The Mayor: Commercial sponsorship income has enabled the London Cable Car to generate an operating surplus for Transport for London since it opened in 2012, other than in 2020/21 due to the Covid-19 pandemic. A new sponsorship arrangement is expected to continue to support the cable car to remain financially sustainable, with any surplus raised through fares or sponsorship reinvested into the transport network.
Please also see my previous response to Mayor’s Question 2021/3574.

Mental Health Support for Firefighters

Hina Bokhari: In addition to measures already in place what more is the LFB doing to support firefighters who may be experiencing mental ill-health?

The Mayor: London FireBrigade’s approach to supporting the physical, psychological and workplace health of their staff will be set out inthe Brigade’s Wellbeing Strategy, which is in the final stages of development. In addition to themeasuresalready being provided,this will set out additionalactions such as apeer support service provisionto help staff who have experienced or witnessed traumatic events. LFB is in the final stages of developing a new mental health strategy, which will reinforce how staff are able to access mental health support both through internal and external partner agencies. Adedicated working group hasalsobeen established todetermineif there are any specific organisational factors that are seriously affecting the mental health of staff.

Free School Meals (1)

Hina Bokhari: Are you satisfied that all free school meals provided to children in London meet the definition of ‘good food’ as outlined in your London Food Strategy?

The Mayor: I have been clear that I want to see more water-only schools and a reduction in the consumption of sugary drinks by children. I have produced a water-only toolkit for primary schools in partnership with Public Health England London in February 2020, which was updated during the pandemic.
I have long encouraged schools to adopt whole-school food policies and work towards my Healthy Schools London programme. Over 2,200 schools have achieved a Bronze, Silver or Gold award through the programme which supports and rewards schools that promote a whole school approach to healthy eating including providing food that meets the School Food Standards.
I am also determined to address the barriers to healthy weight outside the school gates, which is why School Superzones will be an important part of the Healthy Food Healthy Weight mission, taking a holistic, place-based approach by addressing a number of health issues within a specific area.

Air quality and the effects of pollution in London (1)

Krupesh Hirani: You conducted air quality audits at 50 schools and 20 nurseries and then provided them funding to reduce pollution around them. What assessment have you made of the impact and success of these reviews?

The Mayor: A great deal of progress has been made since 2016 and the launch of my first air quality audit programme in 2017. The school and nursery audit programmes formed part of my bold and ambitious plans to tackle air pollution and in 2019, the number of state primary and secondary schools in NO2 exceedance areas reduced by 97 per cent, from 455 in 2016 to 14 in 2019. We estimate a reduction in NO2 levels of over 20 per cent at the audited schools.
Measures like School Streets have had a positive impact and our research showed that they reduced NO2 pollution by 23 per cent during morning drop off. An evaluation is planned at the end of the school and nursery air quality audit programmes, which will include an assessment of the air quality impact of other measures.

Air quality and the effects of pollution in London (2)

Krupesh Hirani: You have allowed London schools located in areas exceeding legal air pollution limits to apply for green infrastructure funding. Can you provide details of what bids were successful and what effect the interventions had on pollution levels?

The Mayor: Between 2018 and 2020, a total of £561,000 from my Greener City Fund Community Green Space Grants was awarded to 38 schools for greening projects focused on reducing exposure to air pollution. This included ringfenced funding in 2019, which supported 30 projects.
These school projects have included measures such as installing green screens and hedges, and planting trees, and the details of funded projects are available on my website at: www.london.gov.uk/greenercity.
An evaluation is planned at the end of the school and nursery air quality audit programmes, which will include an assessment of the air quality impact of these measures.

Air quality and the effects of pollution in London (3)

Krupesh Hirani: You have established a Forum where schools and boroughs can share best practice on tackling idling and reducing car use. Can you provide details of the members of the Forum and which borough they are in?

The Mayor: The Schools and Nurseries Air Quality Forum was established as a legacy of my schools and nurseries audit programmes. The aim of the forum is to facilitate and encourage the sharing of knowledge, experiences and best practice of air quality action between its members, which include schools, nurseries, borough officers and third sector organisations. The original Forum members included those that participated in my air quality audit programmes, however, membership is now open to any London school or nursery interested in learning more about ways in which they can reduce emissions and minimise children’s exposure to air pollution.
Current Forum members include schools and borough officers from Barnet, Brent, Camden, Ealing, Enfield, Greenwich, Hackney, Haringey, Islington, Kensington and Chelsea, Lambeth, Lewisham, Merton, Newham, Redbridge, Richmond and Wandsworth, Southwark, Sutton, and Tower Hamlets.

Air Quality Fund

Krupesh Hirani: The Mayor’s Air Quality Fund has a pan-London project to tackle idling, with a focus on idling around schools. Can you update me on the interventions the project is leading on and what effect the interventions had on pollution levels?

The Mayor: By April 2022 the project will have delivered approximately 180 school workshops and 105 events, despite the challenges of the pandemic. It’s also providing a fleet training programme which achieved London-wide press coverage, and an advertising campaign which used engaging graphics to visualise emissions from idling achieving an estimated reach of 9.5 million people. They will be launching a second advertising campaign in November.
The project has also delivered three borough workshops to facilitate enforcement against idling. As a result, 25 boroughs have so far adopted powers, taken steps to raise awareness and enforced, with another six boroughs expected to take similar action once pandemic pressures ease.
Measuring the impact of idling on ambient levels is particularly challenging. The campaign commissioned a study into the effects of idling which was used in the advertising campaign, and further details of the project’s successes can be found the annual reports on their website.

Working with Small and Medium-Sized Businesses to Plan for the Winter

Hina Bokhari: What engagement are you and the Deputy Mayor for Business having with London’s small and medium-sized businesses to understand their concerns and to plan support for the winter period, especially if we see a re-introduction of COVID-19 restrictions?

The Mayor: My Deputy Mayor for Business and I engage regularly with businesses and listen to their concerns, including the impact of the Covid pandemic. I continue to support businesses through a variety of business support measures including through my London Business Hub and other programmes. I have invested £6 million in Let’s Do London, the biggest domestic tourism campaign London has ever run.
We meet regularly with business organisations both individually and through bodies such as the London Covid Business Forum, my Business Advisory Board, the London Economic Action Partnership and others. Recently, my Deputy Mayor for Business has been undertaking a series of visits to key commercial districts across the Central Activities Zone both to hear directly from businesses in retail, hospitality, leisure and culture and to promote footfall and spending.

Designating Warren Farm and Meadows as a Local Nature Reserve

Caroline Pidgeon: Will you support the campaign to designate Warren Farm and its surrounding meadows by the River Brent as a statutory Local Nature Reserve?

The Mayor: Thank you for recently delivering the Warren Farm petition to me. It’s clear how important Warren Farm is to the local community.
I understand there is a long and complicated history to this site and that the borough is now reviewing how to approach its long-term use and management.
The Warren Farm Nature Reserve Group clearly have a stake in discussions about the site’s future, and in the context of my London Environment Strategy and London Plan it would be right for any decisions to fully consider its nature conservation value and role in London’s wider network of important greenspaces for people and wildlife.
Ultimately however, the decision about the most suitable way for this site to be used long-term, including whether Local Nature Reserve status is appropriate, lies with the borough. Natural England also have an advisory role as the statutory body who are legally responsible for declaring Local Nature Reserves.

Unregistered Fire Risk Assessors (1)

Hina Bokhari: Inside Housing recently reported on the prevalence of unregistered fire risk assessors being used by housing providers in London. How much of an issue is this and how are you working to combat this?

The Mayor: The lack of a specific competence requirement for fire risk assessors is nationwide issue.Nationally, in 2020/21 non-compliant premises had risk assessment that were insufficient or had not been reviewed on over 3,300 occasions and this reflects what London Fire Brigade (LFB) has found in London. Of the 2,004 premises found to be non-compliant in London in 2020/21, fire risk assessments were found to be defective on 202 occasions, with over half of these related to residential accommodation.The Government’s consultation for improvements to the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 included the proposal to introduce a competence requirement for fire risk assessors, which LFB supports. While this proposal is being considered LFB will continue to take robust, proportionate enforcement action where deficiencies are found and signpost people to registers of competent fire risk assessors.

Unregistered Fire Risk Assessors (2)

Hina Bokhari: Given the prevalence of unregistered fire risk assessors how are you using your considerable reach as Mayor of London to highlight and promote best practice in terms of choosing a fire risk assessor through sharing and promoting guidance on choosing an assessor from the Fire Sector Federation and others?

The Mayor: It is important that the Responsible Person uses a competent Fire Risk Assessor and to help support that, clear advice on finding a competent risk assessor is carried on London Fire Brigade’s website. The advice links to the guidance produced by the Fire Sector Federation and includes details of the UK Accreditation Service (UKAS) accredited certification/registration bodies. This information will also be referenced by LFB’s fire safety officers in the course of their duties and when giving advice.

Publicity Campaigns around New Duties in the Fire Safety Act (2021)

Hina Bokhari: Can you provide details on work the LFB is undertaking alongside the National Fire Chiefs Council and others to roll out a publicity campaign around the new duties on Responsible Persons in the Fire Safety Act, due to come into law this Autumn, particularly around the unlimited fines that could be placed on Responsible Persons who do not complete and/or follow-up fire risk assessments properly to try and encourage better practice?

The Mayor: Last year London Fire Brigade took the lead by writing to housing providers when the then Fire Safety Bill was introduced to Parliament. This alerted owners to the fact that they needed to start preparing for the clarifications of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 that the Act would provide. The Brigade is preparing to embark on further communication through appropriate channels and will work with Government and the National Fire Chiefs Council on consistency of information and messaging. This requires the Government guidance to be available by the date the Act comes into force. The penalties for non-compliance, for which unlimited fines have featured for some time, is likely to feature within that messaging.

Diversity in the LFB’s Senior Leadership

Hina Bokhari: What specific action, in addition to those already being taken, is the LFB considering to increase the number of Black, Asian and minority ethnic staff in senior leadership roles?

The Mayor: London Fire Brigade has a number of key initiatives to help increase diversity at senior levels. This includes: providing clear guidance to all staff on LFB’s promotions process;ensuring all assessors are fully trained to conduct interviews which includes unconscious bias training;and targeting LFB’s middle leadership programme to support staff from underrepresented groups to progress tosenior leadership roles.The Brigade is currently developing a recruitment strategy to expand this work. Underrepresented groups, in particular, are encouraged to apply and are targeted through the Equality Support Groups. In addition, LFB is currently finalising guidance that will be available to all internal operational staff to ensure they have access to information on when promotion opportunities arise, and on the assessment processes to enable staff to prepare accordingly.

New Office for Health Improvement and Disparities

Caroline Russell: What engagement do you have planned with the new Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID), now that it has been launched?

The Mayor: I met with Public Health England and Department of Health and Social Care officials in the lead up to these changes. Mary Harpley shared views on behalf of the GLA Group during the engagement phase.
Professor Kevin Fenton has been confirmed as the London Regional Director of Public Health at OHID and continues in his role as Statutory Heath Advisor to my office and the GLA. Vicky Hobart, GLA Head of Health, continues in her role a Deputy Statutory Adviser. I will continue to meet regularly with Professor Fenton and with Dr Tom Coffey, my Health Advisor. We are working to arrange for Professor Fenton to meet with the relevant Deputy Mayors in the coming months to discuss aspects of his new role and any changes.
Further engagement with OHID and UK Health Security Agency (UKSHA) officials will be scheduled as required.

Sites for Gypsies & Travellers

Sem Moema: How are you ensuring there is a fair balance between delivering Policy H14 of the London Plan and your affordable housing targets? Please can you break down the sites for gypsies and travellers by borough?

The Mayor: I’m committed to ensuring enough suitable affordable housing for Londoners. My London Plan 2021 requires boroughs to find capacity to meet both Gypsies and Travellers accommodation needs and their housing target in their Local Plans, including provision of affordable housing.
Where sufficient land is not identified through Local Plans, I raise this as a concern so it can be addressed through the Examination in Public process.
GLA officers are developing a London-wide Gypsy and Traveller accommodation needs assessment to inform borough Local Plans.
My Affordable Homes Programme (AHP) includes capital funding to remodel existing or build new pitches and sites, with £1.74m allocated to remodel 37 pitches to date.
There is no direct balancing between Gypsy and Travellers pitches and affordable housing, either in terms of site identification or the availability and allocation of AHP funding.
The Government provides data on Traveller sites by borough in its Traveller Caravan Count.

Commission for Diversity in the Public Realm

Nicholas Rogers: Please will you outline the work undertaken by the Commission for Diversity in the Public Realm since its inception? Please provide dates of meetings as well as details of any specific actions agreed in those meetings. Please provide details of the specific pieces of public realm that have been discussed at these meetings – statues, artworks, street names, parks, squares etc – and the decisions and actions about those pieces of public realm that have arisen from those discussions. Please also provide a full accounting of the total cost to the taxpayer of this Commission since its inception.

The Mayor: The Commission was established to enrich and add to the current public realm and advise on better ways to raise public understanding behind existing statues, street names, building names and memorials. 14 commissioners were appointed in January 2021 and have now met on five occasions. The meeting notes are published online and can be found on London.gov Commission pages https://www.london.gov.uk/what-we-do/arts-and-culture/commission-diversity-public-realm#acc-i-63088
The total cost to the taxpayer of this work since its inception in June 2020 has been £113,000, including staffing costs.

Domestic abuse

Emma Best: For each year Oct 16 – Sep 17, Oct 17 – Sep 18, Oct 18 – Sep 19, Oct 19 – Sep 20 and Oct 20 - Sep 21 please provide a breakdown of the gender of victims of domestic violence.

The Mayor: Please see attached the requested information. The supplied notes page should be read in conjunction with the data to aid in interpretation.

The Mayor: 3859_Domestic abuse.xlsx

Drugging

Emma Best: For each year Oct 16 – Sep 17, Oct 17 – Sep 18, Oct 18 – Sep 19, Oct 19 – Sep 20 and Oct 20 - Sep 21 please provide a breakdown of reported incidents were women and girls were drugged.

The Mayor: Please see attached the requested information. The supplied notes page should be read in conjunction with the data to aid in interpretation.
It should be noted that the use of these feature codes is not mandatory and relies on the officer knowing that there is a relevant feature code and then applying it to the crime record. Several crime types are indicated by feature codes, and compliance is variable.

The Mayor: 3858_Drugging (2).xlsx

Stalking

Emma Best: For each year Oct 16 – Sep 17, Oct 17 – Sep 18, Oct 18 – Sep 19, Oct 19 – Sep 20 and Oct 20 - Sep 21 please provide a breakdown of the total number of stalking offences and how many victims were women.

The Mayor: Please see attached the requested information. The supplied notes page should be read in conjunction with the data to aid in interpretation.
It should also be noted that the increase in recorded offences of Stalking is due primarily to the changes to the Home Office counting rules for crime that occurred in April 2020. This change meant all cases where a course of conduct (two or more previous similar incidents) is identified between a victim and their former partner this must be recorded as stalking.

The Mayor: 3856_Stalking.xlsx

Supporting Small Businesses

Peter Fortune: Please could you update me on what you have done for small businesses since we last met?

The Mayor: My £6 million Let’s Do London campaign has been instrumental is boosting domestic tourism in London, and this is on course to continue.Daytime visits are still climbing during the week, with numbers nearing 75 per cent of pre-pandemic levels – that’s 19 per cent higher than in late August.
Weekend visits are increasing and are now at around 92 per cent of pre-pandemic levels. Evening footfall has more than doubled since early May, with a 111 per cent increase.
On 21st September, I chaired the London Covid Business Forum, which discussed the latest iteration of our ‘Roadmap to the Safe and Full Reopening of London’s Economy’, developed in consultation with business representatives.
Attracting international tourists back to London is vital to SMEs in hospitality, retail, culture and leisure, and we have lobbied the Government to reduce the bureaucracy associated with travel to the UK.
It was welcome therefore that we’ve since seen the Government announce a simplification of testing requirements for visitors to the UK.
In October the London Business Hub held its ‘London Business Week’ – a week of online and in-person events. Topics for sessions have included exporting, technology adoption and access to finance.
Since its inception in November 2016, the London Business Hub has supported nearly 8,000 businesses, and 350,000 unique users have accessed the online portal. During the pandemic it has provided specific Covid-related advice and webinars to over 4,000 businesses to help them navigate the restrictions and continue trading.
And I’m pleased to say that all four of our London Business Hub physical venues are starting to re-open, offering advice in person again, as well as continuing their virtual service.
London stands ready to play its part in a national recovery that benefits everyone, but to do that London businesses must be able to access the talent they need to prosper and grow.
I continue to lobby the Government to urgently introduce a targeted Covid Recovery Visa to help attract international workers with the necessary skills into key roles.

Flood Response Capability (8)

Anne Clarke: When has the London Fire Brigade’s flood response capability has been used to support a national response to a flooding-related incident. Please provide details for 2017/18 to date.

The Mayor: London Fire Brigade supported the national response to Suffolk Fire and Rescue Service in 2017 and Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service in 2019.

Fixed Estate Charge in LLDC (2)

Sem Moema: What are your expectations of boroughs regarding the Fixed Estate Charge when the London Legacy Development Corporation is dissolved?

The Mayor: There is no expectation for the local boroughs to have any role in the Fixed Estate Charge, as this will be a matter for any successor body following the transition of the London Legacy Development Corporation (LLDC). The local boroughs – through their membership of the LLDC board and the LLDC transition working groups – are involved in this planning for transition.

Covid-19 symptoms

Onkar Sahota: Have you had any discussions with PHE London or the Department for Health about reviewing the current list of COVID-19 symptoms which continues to list only three core symptoms, when research from the Kings College Symptom Study has indicated that there are alternative symptoms with the Delta Variant for people who are both vaccinated and unvaccinated?

The Mayor: I have met regularly with colleagues in Public Health England (PHE) to discuss COVID-19 matters which are important to Londoners and will continue to do so following the creation of the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) and the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID). I have discussed the implications of the findings of the Zoe COVID study with them. Since the start of the pandemic, the Department of Health and Social Care have acknowledged that COVID-19 has a much longer list of symptoms. They keep the list under review with experts. Any change to the symptoms list is a decision made by the Chief Medical Officers of all four nations collectively and would be announced nationally. From 23 September, people no longer need to confirm they have one of the three core COVID symptoms to book a PCR test, only that they have COVID symptoms, without specifying which.

Covid-19 and the Test and Trace system

Onkar Sahota: What representations can you make to ensure that the Government moves faster in moving the Test and Trace system out of the hands of private contractors and outsourcing firms and to give to local public health teams instead?

The Mayor: Reforms to the public health system announced in March became fully operational on 1 October 2021. With these changes, the functions of NHS Test and Trace have become part of the new UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA). I have met regularly with colleagues in Public Health England (PHE) throughout the pandemic to discuss COVID-19 matters which are important to Londoners, including having an effective test and trace service. I will continue to do so following the creation of UKHSA and the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID) and seek assurance that local authorities and their local system partners continue to be an integral part of the response to COVID-19, and that the system as a whole works in the best interest of London’s diverse communities.

Vaccine hesitancy in London (2)

Onkar Sahota: Have you been lobbying the Government to launch a second round of its COVID Community Champions Fund to support councils in tackling vaccine hesitancy? In January 2021, only seven London councils were allocated funding from this scheme.

The Mayor: The Government’s Autumn-Winter plan stated that an additional £23.3 million for a network of ‘Community Vaccine Champions’ would be provided to local authorities and voluntary and community sector organisations to ensure that access to the vaccine is as easy as possible.
Alongside Public Health England and NHSE London, I have provided funding to support a pan-London action learning programme for co-ordinators of the COVID-19 community champions programme to spread good practice across London. The programme has high participation across London boroughs, and I am currently working with partners on how we can extend that support beyond COVID in the longer term.

Covid-19 vaccination in London

Onkar Sahota: Are you confident that the capital is getting the supply of doses it needs to
a) Offer a booster jab to all eligible Londoners?
b) Offer a first dose to 12-15 year olds living in the capital?

The Mayor: NHS London colleagues are working closely with staff in national NHS England and NHS Improvement to ensure that there is a sufficient vaccine supply for London for COVID booster vaccines, the offer to children aged 12-15 years, and the ongoing offer of COVID-19 vaccination to all those who have not yet received a first or second dose (the ‘Evergreen’ offer).
I and my officers are continuing to raise issues of barriers to vaccination across the range of meetings that we are involved in and advocating for timely and adequate supplies of vaccines.

CO2 monitors in schools

Onkar Sahota: Can you provide an update on how many schools in London have received CO2 monitors from the Department for Education so far?

The Mayor: The first deliveries of CO2 monitors started on 6 September to special schools, alternative provision and residential schools. From 1 to 15 October the Department for Education is planning to deliver CO2 monitors to remaining special schools, alternative provision and residential schools as well as to the first set of secondary schools. DfE expects all deliveries to eligible settings to have taken place by the end of the autumn term.
The DfE have confirmed that there is currently no data available on the number of London schools that have received CO2 monitors.

Nursing and medical staff shortages

Onkar Sahota: Do you share my concerns about the recent rise in nursing and medical staffing vacancy rates in London? What action do you think needs to be taken to ensure our hospitals and GP surgeries are adequately staffed in the capital?

The Mayor: I share your concerns and regularly seek assurances that services are adequately staffed. I understand from NHS London that trends typically show increased vacancy rates between May and August as the supply of newly qualified staff depletes. Over a 12-month period the medical and dental workforce has increased in London by 3.86%, with nursing, midwifery & health visiting staff increasing by 2.99%. In primary care direct patient care staff have increased by 24.5%, though nursing staff has decreased by 3.01%. Turnover of staff has decreased from 17% in 2017 to around 15.5% in June 2021. I have asked for a workforce update at a future London Health Board.
I am proud to host access on the GLA website to the CapitalNurse programme to ‘get nursing right for London’. I will fund healthcare hubs as part of my new Academies Programme, to support Londoners hardest hit by the pandemic into good work - key to London’s recovery and long-term economic growth.

Covid-19 testing and International Travel

Onkar Sahota: Do you agree that the Government should cover the costs of COVID-19 testing for international travel to boost the travel and tourism industry amidst concerns about the lack of regulation in the private PCR testing market?

The Mayor: Yes. The letter of 28 September sent by me and members of the London Covid Business Forum to the Secretary of State for Transport proposed that the Government should allow NHS testing capacity to be used for travel purposes; and to fund this appropriately. This could be done cheaply using rapid tests that are only escalated to PCR tests in the event of a positive result.
It also proposed that the Government should treat fully vaccinated travellers - from countries with significantly lower rates of Covid-19 than the UK, with well-vaccinated populations and no known variants of concern, in the same way as domestic travel - with no restrictions, no tests and no passenger locator form.
The Government’s recent announcement reducing the number of ‘red-listed’ countries and associated bureaucracy has gone some way to address this. But the above steps would boost our travel and tourism industry further.

NHS Pressure and the Winter Plan (1)

Onkar Sahota: Are there plans for Met police officers to be abstracted to drive ambulances if London’s NHS is overwhelmed this winter?

The Mayor: The Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) and London Ambulance Service (LAS) work very closely together all the time. The MPS has helped support LAS on two previous occasions during periods of very high demand. There are currently no plans in place for MPS police officers to be abstracted to drive ambulances. However, there are protocols in place for LAS to request support from the MPS should they consider it necessary. Requests for assistance would be considered carefully and set against demands placed upon the MPS at that moment in time.

Usage of Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme (2)

Unmesh Desai: What are the reasons for differences in the number of “right to know” disclosures between BCU’s and how is the Met working to achieve consistent use of these powers across London?

The Mayor: Right to know (RTK) applications are considered on a case-by-case basis depending on the circumstances of the investigation and/or a full risk assessment. The number of RTKs will therefore vary between BCUs at any given time.
The MPS Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme (DVDS) training guidance has recently been updated to highlight the RTK process as an option to be considered in all domestic abuse investigations. DVDS training sessions are being rolled out to BCUs where it is necessary to improve understanding and proactive usage, leading to greater consistency.

NHS powers devolution (1)

Onkar Sahota: Do you agree with the former Chancellor, George Osborne, that more powers over the NHS should be devolved to metro Mayors? What discussions have you been having with the Government on this?

The Mayor: I am heartened that devolution appears to be the agenda for this Government and has been referenced as part of their discussions on levelling up. I continue to make the case to the Government that Mayors are best placed to determine strategic priorities for recovery, investment and growth.
The 2017 London Health and Care Devolution Agreement Memorandum of Understanding has delivered some positive benefits, including the establishment of the London Estates Board and publication of its strategy. I remain unpersuaded however that devolving responsibility for NHS services to my office would be the right approach for London; instead, I will continue to champion, challenge and collaborate with the NHS to deliver the high-quality services Londoners deserve. This includes ensuring that integrated care systems are developed as genuine partnerships between the NHS and local authorities, so that those who know communities best have oversight of the services these communities use.

Mayor's Academies Programmes

Shaun Bailey: How are you measuring the outcomes of the Mayor’s Academies Programmes?

The Mayor: The Mayor’s Academies Programme is designed to help address skills shortages in sectors critical to London’s recovery (creative, digital, green, health and social care, and hospitality) and address underrepresentation in the workforce by supporting Londoners most affected by the pandemic into good work. It has a number of strands: hubs, which build partnerships between organisations such as employers and training providers; AEB funding for employability focussed support resulting in employment; accreditation of training providers to recognise good quality training; bespoke support for excluded groups; and a communications campaign.
An independent evaluator is being procured to provide a rigorous assessment of the impact and outcomes of the Mayor’s Academies Programme. The evaluator will work with the Academies team from early 2022 to ensure that the outcomes of the programme can be fully captured. These will include areas such as Londoners – including underrepresented Londoners - participating in relevant education and training, entering work placements and entering employment in related sectors.

Use of Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme, Protection Orders and Protection Notices

Unmesh Desai: Who dictates how frequently Met Officers use the “right to know” element of Clare’s Law (Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme), Domestic Violence Protection Orders and Protection Notices? Is the decision or strategic direction on how often these tools are used taken by BCU Commanders, Senior officers within a team or unit, or is it left to individual investigating officers to decide when to apply these tools?

The Mayor: The use of Clare’s Law (Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme), Domestic Violence Protection Orders (DVPOs) and Protection Notices (DVPNs) are considered on a case-by-case basis by officers within each BCU. Decisions are made based on the circumstances of the investigation and/or a full risk assessment, and the necessity to apply one or both of these measures.
Whilst the application for the use of these measures is down to individual case officers taking the above into account, the strategic direction for their usage is set by the Head of Profession for Public Protection, Commander Melanie Dales.

Flood Response Capability (7)

Anne Clarke: The London Safety Plan says, “London Fire Brigade will: Consider increasing the number of London Fire Brigade national flood advisors, to provide better intelligence and resilience for simultaneous local and national flooding”. How many London Fire Brigade national flood advisors were there in March 2017 and how many are there now? Please provide reasons for any difference in the numbers.

The Mayor: There were three national tactical advisors for flooding in March 2017. There is now one advisor, which is due to staff either retiring or being promoted to other roles. However, the National Resilience Assurance Team recently ran the first national selection process for the role since 2017. Three London Fire Brigade (LFB) personnel were successful and will attend the National Tactical Advisor courses. This will take LFB’s number to four by early 2022. The flood enhancement project aspiration was to have 12 national tactical advisors, however no courses have been available since 2017. A course will now be held in November 2021 and March 2022 hosted by the National Resilience Assurance Team.

Air Pollution at Schools (2)

Leonie Cooper: Children in London are almost four times more likely to go to a school in an area where air pollution exceeds the World Health Organization limit than children in the rest of England. What urgent and immediate steps could be taken to reduce this?

The Mayor: The bold measures I’ve implemented since becoming Mayor have helped to reduce the number of schools located in areas exceeding legal limits for NO2 by 97 per cent between 2019 and 2016.
Whilst I am pleased with the progress we have made, I would encourage schools and local authorities to use the free support available from my London Schools Pollution Helpdesk to identify and implement measures that could improve air quality for pupils across the city.
Modelling shows that the ULEZ expansion later this month will further reduce the number of peopleexposedto illegal levels of pollution.However, my ability totackle all sources of air pollutionis hampered bylimitedaccess tonationalfunding andpoorly thought out or missing regulations at the national level. As such, I will continue to lobby centralgovernmentforthepowers and funding needed to control emissions from all sources of pollution.

Adult Education Budget Breakdown

Shaun Bailey: Please could you provide a full breakdown of the Adult Education budget, detailing how much funding has been allocated to each pot and fund?

The Mayor: London’s Adult Education Budget (AEB) is primarily allocated to education and training providers across different funding streams, with a small proportion also used for necessary operational costs such as staffing and systems.
In addition to the Grant and Procured programmes which have been delivering since August 2019, I introduced a COVID-19 Response Fund in the 2020/21 academic year supporting providers to adapt provision to meet any immediate demand for learning and skills as a result of the pandemic. In the 2021/22 academic year, I launched the Good Work for All Fund using London's AEB to prioritise training, education and employability support that will enable Londoners to gain relevant skills, retrain, and move into good work in sectors key to London's recovery.
For a breakdown of funding streams for the last academic year and current delivery year, please see the table attached. A full breakdown of delivery for the previous year can be found on london.gov.uk.

The Mayor: 2021-3923 Adult Education Budget Breakdown TABLE.pdf

Good Growth Fund Jobs Created

Shaun Bailey: In response to my question 2021/2096, you told me how many jobs had been created or safeguarded by Good Growth Fund Projects. Please could you be more specific and provide me with updated figures of how many jobs have been created through Good Growth Fund Projects to date?

The Mayor: Ipreviously shared that as of March 31st2021(MQ2021/2096in May 2021)that Good Growth Fund projects have created or safeguarded 970 jobs.
Officers in my Regeneration Unit collectdata on jobs and other output performance on a quarterly basis from Good Growth Fund delivery partners. The deadline for Q2 data from projects is October 15 so they cannot currently provideme with the updatedfigures andhave asked for a brief extension (to w/e October 22) to review and collate this data before I share it with you.

Good Growth Fund Projects

Shaun Bailey: How many Good Growth Fund supported projects have you supported across London? Please give a breakdown of projects and funding per borough.

The Mayor: I have previously set out the answer to this in response toMQs 2095(inMay 2021) and2942(inJuly 2021). All Good GrowthFundprogramme funding was allocated by March 2020, so there have been no additional projects or funding awards since then.

London Fashion Week

Shaun Bailey: How much funding have you spent and allocated to London fashion week each year since 2016?

The Mayor: London Fashion Week is delivered by the not for profit British Fashion Council and is the UK’s major trade event. The GLA has provided funding to the British Fashion Council since 2011 to help retain and develop London's position as a world leading capital of culture.
MQ/2020/0806 set out my funding to British Fashion Council between 2015/16 and 2019/20 https://www.london.gov.uk/questions/2020/0806. Last year, I allocated £649,000 and this year I have allocated £610,000. In 2021/22, London Fashion Week will help deliver £60 million in new fashion sales.
British Fashion Council has played a crucial role supporting businesses during the pandemic by pivoting London Fashion Week to a digital platform. It also launched the BFC Foundation Fashion Fund during the COVID-19 crisis, supporting struggling freelancers and fashion businesses with over £1.5 million in emergency funding.
This autumn, British Fashion Council supported my Let’s Do London campaign by delivering Limited Edition London with leading fashion and retail brands and is playing a role in supporting London’s recovery.

Business Support Awareness

Shaun Bailey: How are you measuring the public/business awareness of your business support measures and what are the awareness levels?

The Mayor: We have been actively promoting the London Business Hub since its relaunch in September 2020, growing and developing our online presence to increase engagement and awareness of our business support offer.
Our social media channels have achieved over 22 million impressions over the Hub’s lifetime. We continue to build on this through targeted campaigns aimed at harder to reach business owners. We are continuing to develop the new London Business Hub website to ensure it meets our businesses’ requirements. Since September 2020, the website has had almost 145,000 unique users.
Almost 6,000 businesses have become members of our website and over 9,000 businesses and business bodies receive our monthly newsletters which include the latest information on our business support programmes. These numbers are continually growing.
My team are also regularly engaging with over 200 London stakeholders and partners to ensure content is disseminated to all groups through their communication channels.

Virtually London

Shaun Bailey: How many businesses and self-employed have you supported through your ‘Virtually London’ campaign?

The Mayor: The Virtually London initiative was one practical way that London & Partners supported their membership community of tourism and hospitality businesses with promotional activity during the lockdown phases of the Covid pandemic; when physical travel and visits were not possible.
It supported over 200 tourism and hospitality businesses, by promoting and amplifying their virtual activities across the Visit London channels, giving them greater audience reach and keeping them front of mind for when visitors were able to come back.
The tourism and hospitality businesses themselves may have employed freelancers/self-employed individuals who would have been indirectly supported by the initiative.
Theinitiative was featured in Forbes as a best practice example of using social media creatively to engage audiences.

Cultural Sector Support

Shaun Bailey: How many businesses have been supported through your £2.3 million emergency fund to support the capital’s cultural sector?

The Mayor: The global COVID-19 pandemic has had a devastating impact on London’s cultural and community organisations and the city’s creative workforce.
As outlined in MQ2021/1808, https://www.london.gov.uk/questions/2021/1808, my £2.3 million Culture at Risk Business Support Fund provided emergency assistance to sustain spaces most vulnerable to the impacts of COVID-19. This included support for artists’ workspaces, grassroots music venues, LGBTQ+ venues and independent cinemas.
The fund is now closed but supported 301 cultural and creative businesses and 11,500 creative freelancers.

London Business Hub

Shaun Bailey: How many businesses have been supported through the London business Hub?

The Mayor: Since its inception in November 2016 my London Business Hub has supported nearly 8,000 businesses and engaged with nearly 9,000 businesses.
All businesses supported by the London Business Hub are micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with micro businesses - that employ 10 people or less with a turnover of under £632,000 - forming the largest group of beneficiaries.
Up to November 2019 the London Business Hub delivered principally lighter touch interventions such as group seminars and events. In 2019, additional funding was secured by the GLA that allowed the provision of more intensive support for businesses, and over 5,500 businesses have benefitted from this.

Drug Consumption Rooms

Emma Best: Would you consider exploring the feasibility of trialling/introducing drug consumption rooms in London, and ask how you could use your convening role between local authorities, public health services, the Met and the Home Office to help influence this?

The Mayor: We have no plans to investigate Drug Consumption Rooms.

Drug Testing Facilities

Emma Best: Would you consider trialling or introducing drug testing facilities through convening nightclub owners, public health officials, local authority representatives, the Met and the Home Office?

The Mayor: We have no plans to introduce drug testing facilities within the night-time economy.

Express Bus Routes

Emma Best: Would the Mayor consider looking at (part-TfL/part-regional authority funded) express bus routes connecting London with its bordering towns?

The Mayor: There are currently 69 Transport for London (TfL) bus routes that run between the Greater London Authority boundary and areas outside it, including town centres such as Watford, Waltham Cross, Dartford, Redhill and Staines. There are also around 60 non-TfL cross-boundary routes which operate under London Service Permits.
There is therefore already a network of services connecting London with its bordering towns. One of the criteria for express routes to be viable is for there to be sufficient demand to run both a local and express route along the same corridor.This ensures all stops are served while allowing each type of service to run at a high enough frequency so that wait times do not cancel out the time savings of an express route.
It is generally simpler and more beneficial to passengers to run one local route at greater frequency than a low frequency local route and an express route that misses stops. The express/limited stop routes with simultaneous local routes predominately run in areas with high demand and population density.In this context, I do not have any plans to ask TfL to look at additional express cross-boundary routes at this time.

505 Bus Route

Emma Best: Including details of frequency, the route travelled and an explanation of why changes happened, please provide me with the dates and extent of any changes to the 505 bus route since 1st January 2003.

The Mayor: Bus route 505 is operated by TrustyBus on behalf of Essex County Council. It is not a Transport for London service and I therefore do not have access to this information.

London Power

Emma Best: Can the Mayor set out London Power's plans to obtain more customers?

The Mayor: London Power has acquired over 6,000 customers since launching in January 2020. We hope to continue growing London Power’s customer base sustainably. However, we are currently operating in unprecedented market conditions, with wholesale gas and electricity prices continuing to rise to all-time highs. This has led to 10 smaller energy suppliers failing.
For the first time, even energy switching sites are recommending that customers stay with their current supplier on priced capped variable rates this winter, which will impact customer acquisition across the whole market. London Power continue to engage with London Boroughs and housing associations to be ready to promote London Power through their channels once market conditions support this.

Community Toilet Schemes

Emma Best: How many different community toilet schemes are there across London and how are you supporting them?

The Mayor: The GLA does not collect data on community toilet schemes. Publicly available data indicates there are schemes operating in more than half of London’s boroughs, contributing valuable provision of toilet facilities in the capital.
My work on promoting accessible and inclusive local centres and high streets includes encouraging local authorities and businesses to use online mapping and information services which promote the availability of their facilities.

Community Ownership Fund

Joanne McCartney: You recently expanded your Culture at Risk team to become the Culture and Community at risk programme, however at present it does not have engagement with the Government’s Community Ownership Fund. Do you agree that linking both up would benefit Londoners seeking to protect heritage buildings, given the much higher cost of procuring heritage assets in London?

The Mayor: Government’s Community Ownership Fund supports community groups to take ownership of assets which are at risk of being lost to the community. My teams are promoting it to community groups through my High Street Challenge, Crowdfund London and Make London cohorts as well as through my Culture and Community Spaces at Risk Programme.
However, Government has seen fit to set the maximum amount of funding available at just £250,000. Given the higher property prices in London, this is likely to constitute far less than fifty percent of the value of an asset or amenity an organisation would seek to acquire, making this fund very difficult for London’s communities to access without significant match funding.
I support increasing the maximum grant amounts available for projects in London, where the market property price is clearly prohibitive and communities are being excluded from this fund.

Health and Social Care Funding

Onkar Sahota: Following your recent comments to the media that the Prime Minister has got his plans to fund social care “completely wrong”, do you share my concerns that the Government’s recent funding plan for social care is unclear on how much will be allocated to support local authorities in this area and that a lack of investment in local Government in the capital could lead to costs being passed on via increased council tax bills for Londoners?

The Mayor: After years of neglect, there is absolutely no doubt that our social care system is in desperate need of proper investment. However, I am extremely concerned that a potential increase in National Insurance will unfairly penalise low earners, young people and businesses who are all struggling more than ever due to the pandemic. It is clear that solving the social care funding problem will require bold and innovative thinking – but hitting those most in need with a tax increase is simply not the way to do this. The Government’s plans for social care funding leave many questions unanswered. I will continue to call for a fair and proportionate funding model for determining individual and governmental responsibilities in paying for care.

Culture Spend during the Pandemic

Susan Hall: What have you spent the culture budget on since the start of the pandemic? Please provide a breakdown of schemes, programmes and initiatives funded by the culture budget since March 2020.

The Mayor: COVID-19 has had a devastating impact on culture in London. Events were cancelled, venues closed, supply chains dried up and income for the creative workforce, 50 per cent of which is self-employed, was dramatically reduced, and in many cases wiped out completely. The creative sector stood to lose £16.5 billion and 152,500 jobs. Since March 2020 I have invested in programmes to help the sector, including supporting 301 organisations and 11,500 creative freelancers through my Culture at Risk Business Support Fund.
The creative economy will help to accelerate recovery. Prior to COVID-19, the creative industries grew five times faster than the average economy. Jobs increased three times faster. It brought £58.4 billion to our economy each year, supported 1 in 6 jobs, and 4 out of 5 visitors come to London for its culture. Culture will play a key role in London’s economic and social recovery.
Programmes funded by the Culture and Creative Industries Unit budget since March 2020 are listed in the Appendix.

Golf Courses (2)

Sakina Sheikh: Where they are not in the Green Belt or Metropolitan Open Land, do you believe there is scope to convert some golf courses into housing to help alleviate the housing crisis?

The Mayor: The majority of golf courses across London are either within the Green Belt (GB) or Metropolitan Open Land (MOL) which enjoys the same statutory protections. Golf courses that are not subject to these designations may be designated at a local level as an open space.
The London Plan 2021 sets out clear policy objectives around increasing housing supply, but also requires boroughs to take account of G1 Green Infrastructure. This requires boroughs to prepare green infrastructure strategies to ensure green infrastructure is optimised by planning, designing and managing green infrastructure in an integrated way to achieve multiple benefits, including improving biodiversity.
Any proposal for housing development on golf courses outside of the GB/MOL would need to be considered on its individual merits through the normal planning process taking relevant planning policies into account.

Golf Courses (1)

Sakina Sheikh: Where appropriate, do you believe London boroughs should review the golf courses they own and consider converting some of them to public parks for more of the community to enjoy and to bring further environmental benefits?

The Mayor: This is a matter for boroughs to consider as the owners of any such golf courses and as the authorities with responsibility for the health and well-being of their communities. I would, of course, support increasing the environmental value of any golf course in a way that is consistent with the leisure needs it is serving, whether that is golf or a wider range of leisure activities.
Through my Greener City Fund, I supported Lewisham Council’s repurposing of the former golf course at Beckenham Place Park. Restoring this space has not only created improved habitat for wildlife alongside the new leisure facilities, but it has also provided a more accessible and inclusive open space for Londoners.

Bus Contracts and Consultations (2)

Len Duvall: Will TfL be revising their policy of changing bus routes in order to cover areas currently outside of bus coverage?

The Mayor: Over 96 per cent of people in London live within 400 metres of a bus stop. The policy of Transport for London (TfL) is to increase network coverage where there is a business case to do so; for example, where there is a new development in an area with low coverage. TfL has no plan to change this policy.

Thames regional flood and coastal committee area

Anne Clarke: The committee area is getting £228m over 4 years. How much of that will be spent in London and can you provide details on what projects the funding will support?

The Mayor: The Environment Agency projects spending over the investment programme in London for Greater London of £221m from 2021/22. 182 projects (addressing flood risk from surface water, river, tidal and the sea) are likely to be supported, including 121 projects specifically related to surface water flood risk.
Project examples include the Friern Barnet Catchment Flood Alleviation Scheme, Green Lanes Flood Alleviation Scheme, Enfield Strategic SuDs and the Silk Stream Colindale Flood Alleviation Scheme.

HGV Drivers and Food Shortages

Sakina Sheikh: Will you lobby for a visa relaxation for HGV drivers from Europe to alleviate the current food shortages in London?

The Mayor: Yes. In recent weeks London’s supply chains for fuel and food have been impacted by an industry wide shortage of HGV drivers. Having called for their support, I welcome that army drivers are now helping to restock forecourts across London and other parts of the country.
Last month I also urged the Government to introduce a new ‘Covid Recovery Visa’ to help sectors like haulage that are struggling with shortages of workers. The Government has since responded by introducing a capped short-term visa to allow overseas HGV drivers to work in the UK for up to three months in the run up to Christmas. However, the scheme has had very limited take up so far and it is clear that much more will be needed to address the scale of the challenge.
That is why I will continue urging ministers to bring in a Covid Recovery Visa that is sufficient enough to give businesses the breathing space they need. It is crucial that businesses are able to maintain critical services as the economy reopens and are given time to train UK workers in hard-to-fill vacancies.

Dedicated ward officer capability

Unmesh Desai: Please advise what policing functions Dedicated Ward Officers (DWO) cannot undertake e.g. whether they are allowed to issue speeding tickets.

The Mayor: Dedicated Ward Officers (DWOs) are Police Constables. They have the same powers (and limitations) as any other holder of the Office of Constable.
An introduction to police powers, and where further information can be found, is available here Police powers: an introduction - House of Commons Library (parliament.uk).

Police officer pay

Unmesh Desai: What representations did you and the Metropolitan Police make to the Government regarding this year’s pay review, and will you and the Met be making further representations to the Government to provide funding through the forthcoming spending review that would allow for increased pay for officers?

The Mayor: Our officers have worked tirelessly, often under extremely difficult and dangerous conditions to keep our communities safe during the pandemic. Their hard work and sacrifice on the front line, where they have been at heightened risk of being exposed to Covid-19, deserves far better than a pay freeze by the Government. I have been clear with the Government that our police officers must be fairly paid, and I continue to support calls for officers’ pay to increase.
The Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) has made detailed submissions to the Police Remuneration Review Board (PRRB) and these can be read on the MPS website. (MPS Submission to the Police Renumeration Review Body(PRRB) by the MPS -2020/21 Review (met.police.uk)

Knife crime (2)

Shaun Bailey: For each year Oct 16 – Sep 17, Oct 17 – Sep 18, Oct 18 – Sep 19, Oct 19 – Sep 20 and Oct 20 - Sep 21 how many people arrested for homicide in London had a previous knife offence?

The Mayor: This information is not readily available in the format requested, and would require in-depth analysis of all identified individual casefiles over this time period in order to answer it.

Social media platforms and extremism

Unmesh Desai: Please advise, by social media platform, the number of referrals to Prevent that have arisen due to extremist comments or posts on the platform.

The Mayor: Counter Terrorism Policing HQ are not aware of any social media platform making a Prevent referral arising from a potential extremist comment or post.
Prevent referrals from other reporting themes (for example policing or education) are likely to include concerns arising from social media activity including comments or posts but these referrals can often be the result of several combined factors, rather than just one. Due to published Prevent statistics not specifying how many referrals have been received because of extremist social media comments or posts we are unable to provide specific figures for this.

Financial Exclusion

Shaun Bailey: What are you doing to tackle financial exclusion in London?

The Mayor: With the current cost of living crisis coinciding with the end of both the furlough scheme and the Universal Credit uplift, there has never been a more important time to ensure that Londoners can access the financial products and services they need to get by.
We know that those households that experience financial exclusion can face extra costs as a result – and are often those that struggle to meet regular expenses – never mind unexpected ones.
I’m determined to do all I can to help. When there was a spike in demand for debt advice last winter, I funded the Debt Free London Partnership to operate on a 24/7 basis, and I’ll continue to promote their service
Through my Advice in Community Settings programme, I’m investing more than £1.5 million over the next two years to fund partnerships across the city to connect the most excluded Londoners with debt and welfare rights advice.
These partnerships can also, where necessary, assist unbanked Londoners with opening bank accounts.
Initiatives I’m funding through my Life Off the Streets programme for rough sleepers, who can struggle to open accounts without an address, will also help.
And for those Londoners who remain unbanked or prefer to use cash, I’m ensuring that we properly consult on any plans by GLA Group members to change payment options.
As the number of financial services moving online increases, it’s essential that all Londoners have the skills and equipment they need to access them
I’m working with partners to tackle digital exclusion through the Digital Access for All recovery mission, and I’ve already committed £1.5 million to work with the London Office of Technology and Innovation (LOTI) on the Digital Inclusion Innovation Programme.

Knife crime (1)

Shaun Bailey: For each year Oct 16 – Sep 17, Oct 17 – Sep 18, Oct 18 – Sep 19, Oct 19 – Sep 20 and Oct 20 - Sep 21 how many people arrested for knife enabled crime in London had a previous knife offence?

The Mayor: This information is not readily available in the format requested, and would require in-depth analysis of all identified individual casefiles over this time period in order to answer it.

Railway Electrification

Elly Baker: How much of the rail network in London is not electrified? And what action have you taken to encourage Government to electrify the network?

The Mayor: Approximately 95 per cent of London’s rail network is electrified, including all Transport for London (TfL) operated rail systems. Considering only the National Rail network, the figure is approximately 90 per cent. In total, roughly 60 km of the network is not electrified. The two Chiltern routes from Marylebone and the Greenford branch line constitute the bulk of this distance, with the remainder comprising several freight-only lines operating at low frequencies. On occasion, diesel trains also operate on electrified routes, though instances of this are much reduced in recent years since the introduction of bi-mode rolling stock on the East Coast and Great Western Main Lines.
TfL supports Network Rail’s traction decarbonisation plan, which seeks to identify line-appropriate solutions to eliminate diesel operation across the remainder of the National Rail network through either electrification or use of battery or hydrogen technology. TfL will continue to liaise closely with Government and the Great British Railways Transition Team to ensure future industry strategy aligns with the aims of the Mayor’s Transport Strategy and the needs of Londoners.

Mayor's Construction Academy

Shaun Bailey: How many Londoners has the Mayor’s Construction Academy supported into work since its launch?

The Mayor: The Mayor’s Construction Academy (MCA) was set up to address skills shortages in the construction sector. The MCA hubs develop and strengthen partnership working between employers, training providers and other local partners to improve the quality and relevance of training provision and to help Londoners, including those from underrepresented groups, to progress into employment in the sector.
Since hub delivery began in March 2019, against baseline activity, hubs have reported that an additional 4,285 construction learners have progressed into construction employment or apprenticeships in the construction sector across the hub areas.

Setting Rail Fares

Elly Baker: The Williams-Shapps Plan for Rail says, “Existing devolved authorities in Scotland, Wales, London, Merseyside, and Tyne and Wear will continue to exercise their current powers and to be democratically accountable for them. They will continue to award contracts and set fares on their services, for instance. As now, devolved rail authorities will need to work together in partnership with Great British Railways.” What, if anything, has the Government said regarding how fares will be set in London and how conflicts between fares set by TfL and those set by Great British Railways will be managed?

The Mayor: There have been brief discussions with the Department for Transport (DfT) about the next fares revision. As part of these, the DfT has advised that Transport for London and other devolved authorities will continue to operate as they do now. There have been no other discussions.

Chief Digital Officer

Shaun Bailey: What has your Chief Digital officer achieved since his appointment?

The Mayor: Since his appointment in September 2017, my Chief Digital Officer(CDO), Theo Blackwell MBE has made great strides in ensuringLondon is the smartest city in the world. A report back on the outcomes of mySmarter London TogetherRoadmap(2018-21) will be published shortly. Thisoutlines progress towards the objectives of better digital services, data sharing, connectivity, smart pilots, digitalskillsand city-wide collaboration.I have identified some key highlights.
London has a world leading examples of online citizen engagement in policymaking through my online engagement platform Talk London, and citizen participation through crowdfunding platforms like Make London and Pay-it-Forward.
Thereare now stronger foundations for joining-up data across London’s public services to support both core public services and the Recovery Programme, and work is well advanced on a new city data platform and governance.Under his stewardship, the GLAhasproduced nationally recognised data services: Infrastructure Mapping Application-private data sharing to ‘dig once’; the Planning Datahub– alive feed of all planning applications in city;theHigh Streets Data Service-detailed local economic data using spend and footfall from private sources;and the Cultural Infrastructure Map-open data on cultural assets.
Connected Londonhas also achievedground-breaking mobilisation of TfL and other public assets to improve digital infrastructure for Londoners and an opportunity to expand gigabit capable internet speeds across London and prepare the way for 5G and emerging technologies. In addition, the London Plan set the most comprehensive planning policies in the UK on fibre and mobile connectivity in future developments.
London played a major role in the success of the EU Sharing Cities programme by piloting smart technologies in the Royal Borough of Greenwich, building expertise in deploying and financing smart technologies to support the green transition and working with other European cities, as well as establishing a track record of mobility and green initiatives.
Opportunities for Londoners to access basic and advanced digital skills are now in placeandmyDigital Talent Programme is an example of innovation in skills delivery.
My CDO has alsosupportednew institutionstoenable collaboration at scale via the London Office for Technology and Innovation (LOTI)– helping boroughs work together to bring the best of digital and data innovation to improve public services and outcomes for Londoners;and TfL’s Innovation team–delivering better mobility services in collaboration with innovators.Developing expertise in open call approaches fosters both valuable innovation and partnershipswith scale-ups and the tech sector.

Early Years Hubs

Emma Best: Are there plans to further fund the Early Years Hubs?

The Mayor: GLA funding enabled collaboration between local partners to improve the quality and take up of early years provision. Hubs also sought to improve early education as a career choice and support local parents into employment. The Hubs collectively supported 500 early years providers and over 3,000 practitioners. They all developed sustainability plans to continue their activities beyond the GLA funding. This support will continue to have a real impact on local families. We will soon publish an online toolkit to share the learning and good practice across the sector. As part of the London Recovery Programme, I have committed funds through the Robust Safety Net Recovery Mission to continue raising awareness of childcare offers and entitlements. I have also launched ‘Strong Early Years London’ to help address the impact of the pandemic by providing sector-specific business support, hosted on the London Business Hub. It offers a personal triage service and more intensive interventions for early years providers most at risk.

Extinction Rebellion Economic Cost

Emma Best: Thank you for detailing cost to the police in response to my question 2021/3677. However, the question concerned was regarding the cost to small businesses and London’s economic recovery. Please can you address this by answering the following in that remit: What is your assessment of the cost of the Extinction Rebellion protests on small businesses and London’s economic recovery?

The Mayor: We do not hold information on the costs of the September protests to small businesses and the London economy. However, it is clear that the protests affected London’s businesses large and small where they occurred.
I share the passion of those who have taken to the streets to highlight the urgent need to tackle the climate crisis. However, this does not mean that individuals should be committing unlawful acts and creating disruption to Londoners, and I continue to urge Extinction Rebellion to think about the wider impact of their tactics.
In the meantime, I am helping London recover from the pandemic. I invested £6m in my ‘Let’s Do London’ campaign to get visitors back to the city, and increase consumer expenditure. In addition, my London Business Hub continues to provide free support to small businesses, both online and in-person.

Edmonton Incinerator

Emma Best: Thank you for our meeting regarding the Edmonton Incinerator rebuild in September. In regards to the call made for you to publicly oppose this project, will you do so?

The Mayor: I have been clear that London is facing a climate emergency and an air pollution crisis, and I will continue to oppose new incineration capacity in London, which is not needed to manage the city’s non-recyclable waste. I opposed the application for a new Cory incinerator as well as the recent application to extend the existing plant.
I have no powers to pause the Edmonton scheme, this responsibility lies with government. I am therefore focused on making sure that the facility, and London’s other incinerators, minimise their environmental impact by only managing truly non-recyclable waste, maximising the heat and electricity generated, and operating to the most stringent air quality standards.
I am happy to follow up with the Environment Agency, who regulate emissions from energy from waste plants, to seek assurance that they will ensure this facility maintains strict compliance with the highest possible standards at all times.

Wave Trust

Emma Best: In response to question 2021/3695 regarding meeting the WAVE Trust can you confirm this means you will not be meeting them personally?

The Mayor: As you can appreciate, I receive a large number of meeting requests and as much as I would like to satisfy all requests, I have many statutory commitments that I must fulfil as part of leading the world's most global city at a time of unprecedented challenge.
The Violence Reduction Unit’s (VRU) Director has recently reached out to the WAVE Trust and has offered a meeting. It is hoped that by meeting with the VRU Director and her team, whose work is most closely aligned with the WAVE Trust, they will find the opportunity to meet with them equally valuable.
I regularly meet with the VRU Director who provides me with updates on all aspects of her work.
I thank the WAVE Trust for all that they do to understand and mitigate adverse child experiences.

London Council Tax

Emma Best: What plans do you have to ensure you keep Londoners’ Council Tax as low as possible this year?

The Mayor: I set out my planning assumptions for 2022-23 council tax levels in the Budget Guidance, issued to the GLA Group in July this year. The GLA council tax precept comprises two elements: an element for policing and a non-policing services element. The Budget Guidance assumes, at this stage, both elements will increase by 1.99 per cent between 2021-22 and 2022-23, in line with assumptions in previous years and previous government policy statements.
Ultimately, however, the final increase will depend on the funding settlements from central government for policing, transport and fire and rescue services for 2022-23 and the expectations set out by government on council tax increases. These announcements are unlikely to be made until December and I will confirm my intentions thereafter.

Digital Talent Programme

Shaun Bailey: How many Londoners has the Digital Talent Programme supported into work since its launch?

The Mayor: The Mayor’s Digital Talent programme is a multi-stranded programme that aims to increase the quality and volume of industry-led digital training opportunities for young Londoners aged 16-24 years, with a special focus on young women and people from BAME background to increase the representation of these groups in the digital and tech sectors in London.
One of the programme’s key targets is to support 500 young Londoners to gain new skills and work experience through work placements. To date, the Digital Talent Programme has supported 520 learners through the following strands: Higher Level Digital Skills, Digital Work Placement, Digital Skills Training, and Young Entrepreneurs.
Also, since its launch in 2017, the programme has supported 1,249 young Londoners to access new, industry-approved learning opportunities (the target was 800 people).
The programme will be completed by March 2022 and, currently, there are two live projects focused on providing work placement opportunities to young Londoners.

Food Poverty Action Plan Report

Emma Best: Will you provide details, through a report, of the success of Food Poverty Action Plans in the 10 London boroughs that were supported to create them?

The Mayor: The impact of Food Poverty Action Plans has already been documented, including through the ‘Response, Resilience and Recovery: London’s Food Response to Covid-19’ report published earlier this year by Sustain.
The report stated action plans were in place for many of those councils with strong foundations prior to Covid-19 and this enabled them to respond quickly to the pandemic’s impact on levels of food insecurity.
The report also included writing an action plan as one of ten recommendations to local authorities. Historically, they have also been used as indicators and examples of best practice in Sustain’s ‘Beyond the Food Bank’ report, which monitored the actions councils across London took to tackle household food insecurity.

Flood Response Capability (4)

Anne Clarke: Please provide a list of the London Fire Brigade’s flood prevention equipment as of March 2017 and as of September 2021?

The Mayor: Until 2017 London Fire Brigade (LFB)’s flood prevention equipment consisted of 25 flood suits in 4 flood response kits, and 10 Fire Rescue Units with water rescue capability carried 5 dry suits. This equipment is still in use.
Since March 2017 LFB’s flood prevention equipment consists of: 500 metres of flood barriers mobilised from the Operational Support Centre (OSC) to protect critical infrastructure; 250 metres of flood barriers on the Operational Support Unit at Finchley fire station; 5 flood rescue powerboats for Type B flood rescue teams; 250 additional sets of flood rescue Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for frontline crews; 60 new dry suits and associated PPE for Type B flood rescue teams; and 142 ejector pumps - one on every fire appliance - to pump out confined spaces whilst protecting crews from exposure to toxic gases.

Minimum levels for pollutants

Leonie Cooper: How are you responding to the new publication of the WHO document giving new minimum levels for particulate matter (‎PM2.5 and PM10)‎, ozone, nitrogen dioxide, sulphur dioxide and carbon monoxide?

The Mayor: I strongly welcome the World Health Organization’s ambitious new guidelines. These reflect the overwhelming weight of evidence about the devastating impact of air pollution, particularly particulate matter, even at low levels. This is why I am expanding the Ultra Low Emission Zone this month, continuing to invest in walking, cycling and public transport, decarbonising the bus fleet and working with boroughs to support their enforcement of woodburning regulations.
But I know we need to go further. My ultimate aim is for London to become a zero pollution city but we need all levels of government working together if we are going to achieve these new guidelines. I urge Government to recognise the health evidence and give city leaders the power and funding we need to consign pollution to the history books.

London Internet Connections

Shaun Bailey: What percentage of London internet connections were subscribed to 30+ MBPS each year since 2016?

The Mayor: Data on the number ofactive connections to a particular service isnot available at a London level.Ofcom, the communicationsregulator, measurestake up of services at a UK level, however this is done through asurveyof a small sample size(approx. 3000 individuals), and therefore isnot accurate enough to bebroken down.Ofcom do publishinformation onthe number of premises within London that can access speeds over 30Mbit/s since 2018, please see tables below.Data before this time was reportedusing different classifications and is notcomparable.My officershave and continue to lobby Ofcom and government to share more granular and useful data for local governments to better understand the state of connectivity in London and beyond.
Sep-18
Sep-19
Sep-20
May-21
Number of premises in London
3,458,032
3,872,556
3,885,974
3,891,934
Number ofNGA*connections
3,349,586
3,721,913
3,759,005
3,768,896
% of NGA connections
96.86%
96.11%
96.73%
96.84%
Sep 18 to Sep 19
Sep 19 to Sep 20
Sep 20 to May 21
Increase in number of premises
414,524
13,418
5,960
% increase in number of premises
11.99%
0.35%
0.15%
Increase in number of NGA connections
372,327
37,092
9,891
% increase in number of NGA connections
11.12%
1.00%
0.26%
Next Generation Access (NGA) is defined by Ofcom as new or upgraded access networks that will allow substantial improvements in broadband speeds and quality of service compared to today’s services. Namely, Fibre to the Cabinet (FTTC), Fibre to the Premises (FTTP) andData Over Cable Service Interface Specification (DOCSIS)technologies.

Intelligent Speed Assistance (3)

Siân Berry: Thank you for your answer to question 2021/0480. How many buses in London now have ISA fitted, what proportion of the fleet does this cover, and how many do you expect to fit with it each year until they all have this system in place?

The Mayor: Transport for London now has 1,786 buses fitted with Intelligent Speed Assistance (ISA), which represents around 19 per cent of its overall fleet. To expand ISA as quickly as possible, all new buses that enter the fleet will be fitted with it, and, subject to funding continuing to be available, up to 3,000 mid-life buses will be upgraded to have it by the end of March 2023.
The bus safety programme has a wide range of interventions, and each is assessed for the benefits it will deliver. For buses that are leaving the fleet in the next few years, the additional costs (compared to installation when new) and short period of benefit make the case for retrofitting technology like ISA on these buses weak, and funds are better invested into other interventions.
There is no yearly rollout plan for ISA as the proportion of new vehicles entering the fleet can vary with the attractiveness of operator bids for bus routes. However, TfL hopes to have all the fleet fitted no later than 2030 and is engaging with suppliers to deliver these as soon as possible in the face of pandemic disruption to supply chains and component availability.

Rail Timetables

Elly Baker: Great British Railways will draw up timetables for passenger rail services. Has the Government explained how TfL can participate in timetabling to ensure that the scheduled services benefit Londoners?

The Mayor: The Government has not confirmed this matter yet. Transport for London will continue to liaise closely with the Great British Railways Transition Team to ensure that any future timetabling process protects the interests of Londoners.

Thames Estuary 2100 Plan

Anne Clarke: As part of the current review process can you explain what changes to the Plan you would like to see?

The Mayor: I support the Environment Agency in ensuring the TE2100 plan is delivered to protect Londoners. My officers are also members of the 10-year review advisory group.
As part of the review process it is vital that future flood risk solutions integrate world class flood protection whilst preserving the river frontage for economic and recreational uses and protect London’s rich heritage. Plans for a new Thames Barrier, including greater certainty on decision points for when planning for the construction of a new barrier will need to commence are also key.
Critically, the review should address the funding mechanisms for implementing the plan. A new Thames Barrier is of national significance, protecting national interests and the UK economy, so the costs for funding must not fall to Londoners to bear. I support the Review’s approach to engagement, including the development of a new workstream looking at the wider benefits the plan can deliver for the estuary while still recognising the fundamental flood risk management role of the Plan.

Resilience and Innovation Fund

Anne Clarke: What bids, if any, has the GLA Group made to the fund, either on its own or with partners?

The Mayor: The Mayor’s Resilience Fund ran an open call for partners and challenge ideas from September to December 2020. During that period, the GLA received over 700 expressions of interest to join as a partner organisation, many of which came from local authorities across London.
However, no members of the GLA Group submitted an application to partner apart from a bid from the Hackney Wick and Fish Island Creative Enterprise Zone, which is managed jointly by London Borough of Tower Hamlets, London Borough of Hackney and the London Legacy Development Corporation.
The bid was successful and resulted in the Affordable Workspace Challenge, which invited innovators to create solutions that will help local businesses to access and occupy affordable new space. This challenge was launched as an open call to innovators in February 2021, alongside 10 others, and tech innovators were invited to apply for funding to co-develop their solution together with the Hackney Wick and Fish Island Creative Enterprise Zone.

Drain London

Anne Clarke: How much of the £3.2 million grant for Drain London was spent on the project and how much was assigned to the delivery of the London Sustainable Drainage Action Plan through to April 2020?

The Mayor: The Drain London programme was originally set up in 2010 in response to better understand and manage surface water flood risk in London. The project was awarded a £3.2 million grant from Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs in 2010. The first stages of the programme delivered surface water flood risk mapping and management plans for all 32 London boroughs and the City of London in 2011. The programme also delivered detailed studies into 28 areas of high surface water flood risk and also delivered a range of pilot demonstration projects showing how sustainable drainage measures can be retrofitted into the urban environment between 2011 and 2015. These projects used the majority of the Drain London grant, £2,818,600.
The balance held in reserve for Drain London programme after the work described above was £381,400. Mayoral Decision 2339 approved the remaining funds to be assigned to the London Sustainable Drainage Action Plan.

Sustainable drainage interventions (2)

Anne Clarke: You have previously said there has been “an average 87% reduction in discharge rates compared to pre-development”. Can you provide an updated figure and provide further details on what such a reduction means to people living in the areas covered by those new developments?

The Mayor: The 87% reduction in discharge rates figure is the latest figure. This kind of reduction in discharge rates will lead to a general reduction in surface water flood risk to people in areas downstream from the new development in that same drainage catchment. It demonstrates that London Plan policies are incrementally reducing local surface water flood risk over time with every new development. New development in isolation, while important, is not sufficient to address future risks from surface water flooding in London, extensive retrofitting of SuDS measures and other flood resilience measures will also be needed.

Sustainable drainage interventions (1)

Anne Clarke: You are currently developing a comprehensive map that shows where all sustainable drainage interventions have been delivered within the public realm. Is this map now live and can you provide the data behind the map?

The Mayor: Alongside the recently improved Planning Datahub which monitors the inclusion of Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems (SUDS) in new planning consents, the map we have recently worked with boroughs to update, shows SUDS that have been retrofitted in the public realm. Meaning it will not show all SUDS in the public realm (as some will have been delivered as part of new development schemes) but it will showcase where investment has gone in to retrospectively improving drainage.
The map will help promote the delivery of high-quality SUDS schemes as they are essential to managing surface water in the city. The data collected will be made available on the London Datastore. The map and data will be published by the end of October 2021.

Flood Response Capability (11)

Anne Clarke: The London Safety Plan says the emergency services in London will undertake “A review of our respective roles at incidents that involve specialist rescue and search capabilities, including line operations, flood response, water rescue & body recovery”. Please provide details of the review and what changes have been made as a result.

The Mayor: A comprehensive Fire Rescue Unit review and a Water Rescue review have both been completed. As a result, all water rescue related training now conforms to national fire service standards. This course enables crews to wade, use Flood Rescue Boats and deploy flood barriers. All Pump and Pump Ladder staff are trained in the use of ejector pumps.
Memorandums of Understanding (MOUs) to establish joint working and other arrangements are now in place with partner agencies across London. This includes: the London Ambulance Service Hazardous Area Response Team; Port of London Authority; Metropolitan Police Service (MPS); Marine Police Unit, Maritime and Coastguard Agency; London Coastguard; National Emergency Services Support Taskforce (dangerous structure/demolition specialists for Urban Search and Rescue); MPS Search Dogs; Drone collaboration; and support for MPS for missing persons and Disaster Victim Identification.

Fraud Helpline

Tony Devenish: The banks recently launched a hotline to protect customers from fraud. How will the Met work with the banks to help customers who call this helpline?

The Mayor: The Metropolitan Police Service already works closely with many partners to help reduce fraud and support victims. This new helpline is a pilot project run by Stop Scams UK, a collaboration of Banks, the Financial Conduct Authority and telecom companies. It provides bank customers who have suspicions around being contacted in relation to a financial matter, a method by dialing 159 to make direct contact with the customer’s bank. The Metropolitan Police will respond to any allegations of fraud reported through this initiative via the usual routes, which include an immediate response if a ‘call to service’ is received, or through the national reporting method via Action Fraud.

Flood Prevention Funding

Anne Clarke: Please provide details of what Government funding, if any, has been provided to the GLA Group to support flood prevention activities. Please breakdown the funding by financial year and program.

The Mayor: The GLA is not a Lead Local Flood Authority and so does not receive routine funding for surface water management that LLFAs do. We bid to Defra and received £3.2m in 2010 for the Drain London programme, which funded mapping to improve the evidence base on London’s surface water flood risk and the production of a Surface Water Management Plan for each borough. In 2016, the London Sustainable Drainage Action Plan (LSDAP) was launched following Drain London to promote retrofit of SuDS across London. The remainder of the funding currently supports the LSDAP to target priority areas of surface water flood risk, poor water quality, and constrained sewer capacity.
Surface water schemes in London often struggle to attract Government funding, being too small to justify the burdensome process of applying for the funding. The Thames Regional Flood and Coastal Committee provided £750k to six boroughs for the London Strategic SuDS Pilot in 2017 to develop a simplified method for releasing the funding by demonstrating wider benefits of SuDS schemes. I have written to the Defra Secretary of State seeking to address the need for funding for flood risk measures, maintenance of highways drainage, improving alerts, and updating the Drain London evidence base.

London Sustainable Drainage Action Plan (2)

Anne Clarke: What plans, if any, do you have for a new set of specific actions to cover the next 5 years?

The Mayor: My London Sustainable Drainage Action Plan set the framework for increased delivery of SuDS across London. Most actions in the LSDAP have been delivered (MQ2021/4204), some actions complete in 2022 and others will continue on an ongoing basis, including influencing of sectors and looking for opportunities to coordinate SuDS delivery as part of maintenance to existing buildings, land and infrastructure.
Recent flooding further highlights that London needs more rapid rollout of SuDS and other flood resilience measures to keep pace with climate change. Despite not having powers for flooding I have been lobbying government to increase funding for surface water flood risk. My roundtables (MQ2021/3580) have identified that a more strategic approach to planning for and managing surface water flooding across London is needed.
The outcomes of the latest roundtable (see 2021/4065) established a task and finish group that will, as part of its remit, consider how the retrofitting of sustainable drainage and other flood risk management measures can be accelerated, planned and delivered more strategically with a clear funding source in place.

London Sustainable Drainage Action Plan (1)

Anne Clarke: The December 2016 action plan aims to set the direction for the next 20 years but included 40 actions specifically for the first five years of the plan. Have all 40 actions been completed?

The Mayor: The GLA website provides a progress report on the London Sustainable Drainage Action Plan (LSDAP) up to February 2021 under the section "Progress made to date". 35 out of the 40 actions have been complete or are “ongoing” actions.
The LSDAP originally included commencement and delivery dates for each of the actions. However delays in the recruitment of a project manager, and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has delayed some implementation to 2022.

Paving of front gardens

Hina Bokhari: What monitoring, if any, has been undertaken of the implementation in London of the changes from October 2008 to the General Permitted Development Order, making the hard surfacing of more than five square metres of domestic front gardens permitted development only where the surface in question is rendered permeable?

The Mayor: Conformity with the requirements of the General Permitted Development Order is a matter for Local Planning Authorities (which in London is the boroughs) and more specifically the capacity and priorities of their Planning Enforcement functions.
Monitoring is a resource intensive task and I know boroughs have to manage competing planning enforcement priorities.
I have funded depaving projects and published guidance (Grey to Green – A Guide to Community-Led Depaving Projects) to raise awareness of the impacts impermeable paving can have, and will raise the issue of monitoring with London Councils.

Labelling of wet wipes

Hina Bokhari: Do you support the campaignby Thames 21 for mandatory labelling of wet wipes as non flushable?

The Mayor: I have supported and worked with Thames21 for many years. Prior to lock down all money raised from the charge I introduced at the City Hall café for disposable coffee cups was donated to them and they were part of the group of stakeholders I convened to address the problem of littered disposable masks and PPE.
I strongly believe that labelling is critical in ensuring clear and consistent messaging for consumers. In my response to recent government consultations following on from their Resources and Waste Strategy I stated that government should set requirements for labelling and expressed my support for legally enshrined and mandatory labelling requirements. I made the point that consistency is key for driving consumer knowledge and responsible behaviour. I am happy to support the Thames21 campaign and call on government to respond promptly in order to provide much needed clarity.

Closure of Rye Lane to buses

Caroline Pidgeon: Has TfL undertaken any assessment of the disruption to users of Peckham Rye station that was generated by the past closures of Rye Lane to buses?

The Mayor: The current closure of Rye Lane was introduced by the London Borough of Southwark in order to facilitate social distancing, which was introduced on 6 July 2020. Transport for London (TfL) has not undertaken an assessment of the disruption to users of Peckham Rye station from this closure or from any past closures for utility works.
At the time the closure was introduced, weekday passenger entries to Peckham Rye station were around 3,500 which was around 32 per cent of pre-pandemic demand. This has since increased to 60 per cent. Not all of these entries will have been adversely impacted by the closure and some journeys will have benefited from improved walking links along Rye Lane. The social distancing scheme was a temporary measure as part of an 18-month trial, and the road is expected to be reopened to buses later this month (October 2021).

Updates to climate plans after recent flooding

Zack Polanski: Recent surface water flooding in London has led to Tube stations and hospitals closing, and caused as much as £200 million of costs in damage. How are you updating your climate adaptation and climate risk plans after this flooding?

The Mayor: My roundtable on the flooding has convened key stakeholders to review London’s emergency response arrangements to these incidents and the longer-term challenges of prevention and adaptation to surface water flooding.
The London Resilience Forum has prepared a multi-agency debrief on the incidents in an accelerated timeframe with 30 recommendations for the London Resilience Partnership to inform and improve future emergency response arrangements. These recommendations cover areas including response plans, communications between responding organisations, situational awareness and access to data, public communications and engagement, roles and responsibilities for operational matters and support to the public.
To address the longer-term challenges of adaptation, the roundtable has established a task and finish group chaired by London Councils and the Environment Agency. The group will address governance challenges, the funding gap for flood alleviation measures, availability of data and evidence to boroughs on current and future asset resilience, and promoting community or household resilience. I have raised the urgent issue of funding for surface water flooding in my letter to the Defra Secretary of State last month and in my submission to the Comprehensive Spending Review.

The National Underground Asset Register (2)

Elly Baker: The Barking Riverside Extension has been delayed, and seen a rise in costs, in part due to the discovery of uncharted utilities in the construction area including a Thames Water pipe that does not appear on any of its records. What discussions, if any, have you had with utility providers about the accuracy of their records?

The Mayor: The utility companies all worked with Transport for London (TfL) to minimise the disruption (and cost) caused by these discoveries at Barking Riverside. To avoid more regular occurrences of this nature, TfL engages with all utility companies to improve information sharing between parties and ensure greater accuracy of information.
More broadly, the Greater London Authority (GLA) has been a delivery partner for the Geospatial Commission’s National Underground Asset Register (NUAR) since it launched in 2019. Over the past two years, as part of a regional pilot, the GLA has engaged with all major utilities across London to gather and map their underground asset data (for example the location of pipes and cables). Following the successful completion of pilots in London and the North East, the Geospatial Commission launched the build of a national register in September, starting in London, the North East and Wales.
Improving data quality is a key ambition of NUAR and the GLA is working with the Geospatial Commission to improve the accuracy of asset records, including developing data specifications and providing feedback to asset owners on data conformance. An observations tool is under development that will enable excavators to log data inaccuracies, for example when an asset is not in the same location as the data indicates. This centralised digital map of underground pipes and cables will improve efficiencies and safety in construction and development.

The National Underground Asset Register (1)

Elly Baker: The National Underground Asset Register, a standardised and interactive digital tool showing the location of underground pipes and cables, will complete a minimum viable product for three regions - the North East of England, Wales and London by 2023. What involvement does TfL have with this work?

The Mayor: Transport for London (TfL) has been involved with the National Underground Asset Register since 2019 when it was a pilot led in London by the Greater London Authority (GLA). During the pilot, TfL signed a data distribution agreement to share data that was mapped to the prototype platform. The data provided included structural information where extra care is required when excavating, as well as other essential highway asset data showing the location of traffic signals, CCTV cameras, and pedestrian crossings. TfL also participated in testing the prototype platform, with feedback captured for consideration when development of the national platform commences.
Going forward, TfL, in association with the GLA, is committed to supporting the Geospatial Commission with the build of the National Underground Asset Register as soon as the project is ready to onboard stakeholders. As with the pilot, TfL will be ready to participate in stakeholder groups, review data distribution agreements and provide any relevant datasets that contribute towards the successful launch of this much-needed centralised data hub that will help deliver safer conditions for highway sector workers.

London Plan Annual Monitoring Report

Andrew Boff: In response to MQ 2021/2810 you said the next London Plan Annual Monitoring Report will be published later this year. It will cover data from 1 April 2019 to 31 March 2020, meaning it will be published more than 18 months after the end of the data collection period. What are the barriers to publishing Annual Monitoring Reports closer to the reporting period they relate to?

The Mayor: The AMR for 2019/20 has been delayed due to issues with the availability of externally supplied data. Once this is resolved my officers will complete the analysis and I will publish the document.
As an interim measure, in March this year, I published all of the up to date data that was already available and officers have continued to update this. This data can be found here.
I agree that publishing monitoring reports so far from the period of monitoring reduces their impact and value to decision makers, so my officers are in the process of launching a new monitoring framework to support the London Plan 2021. This will include a new lighter monthly reporting framework. It is planned to have the first iteration of this out in coming months.

Right to Buy Back Scheme (1)

Andrew Boff: Further to question 2021/3651, can you please confirm whether or not the Right to Buy Back scheme will draw on funds allocated for the Building Council Homes for Londoners programme?

The Mayor: The Right to Buy-back scheme and the Building Council Homes for Londoners programme both draw on funds from the Mayor’s 2016-23 Affordable Homes Programme.
As stated in answer 2021/3651, where bids meet the terms of other GLA programmes, the GLA will have discretion to direct bids to other programmes accordingly (in consultation with the relevant borough). For example, some boroughs may be able to draw down ringfenced Right to Buy receipts to support buy-backs and other acquisitions.

Right to Buy Back Scheme (2)

Andrew Boff: Further to question 2021/3651, will any of the homes purchased under the Right to Buy Back scheme count towards delivery of the Building Council Homes for Londoners programme?

The Mayor: Homes delivered through the Right to Buy-back scheme are counted against the Mayor’s target of delivering 10,000 new and Right to Buy replacement council homes, as set out in the Building Council Homes for Londoners programme prospectus.

Green Belt

Andrew Boff: In your response to Enfield’s draft Local Plan, where you object to the loss of Green Belt land, you also say that this approach is “premature”. What do you mean by this, and will you rule out ever supporting the release of Green Belt land in Enfield or anywhere else in London?

The Mayor: As my London Plan clearly states in Policy G2, exceptional circumstances are required to justify any de-designation of Green Belt through the preparation of a Local Plan. Only if Enfield has explored all available and suitable brownfield land opportunities to accommodate growth and exhausted these options or ruled them out for appropriate reasons, can they put forward exceptional circumstances as justification for Green Belt release. In the GLA’s response to Enfield’s draft Local Plan on my behalf, it is clear that the Council have not yet exhausted all the growth opportunities available to them for new development on previously developed brownfield land. This is the reason why it is premature for the borough to propose the de-designation of Green Belt land.
The assessment of whether or not exceptional circumstances justify the de-designation of Green Belt will ultimately rest with the independent Inspector conducting the examination into the Local Plan.

Usage of Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme

Unmesh Desai: Please advise how often the Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme, known as Clare’s law, was used in 2019, 2020 and 2021 by borough. Please provide this breakdown by year and by borough and provide a breakdown of how many of these were “right to know” or “right to ask” and how many times each of these requests were approved or denied in each area per year.

The Mayor: Please see attached the requested information. The supplied notes page should be read in conjunction with the data to aid in interpretation. The information supplied relates to:
‘Disclosure made’ refers to when a positive disclosure is made to the applicant/person at risk.
‘Disclosure not made’ refers to when there are not necessary grounds to satisfy that a disclosure is made.
‘Right to Ask (RTA)’ refers to when members of the public have a right to ask police where they have a concern that their partner or former partner may pose a risk to them. This could also be where an individual is concerned that the partner of someone they know poses a risk to that individual.
‘Right to Know (RTK)’ gives police and partner agencies the right to provide information to an individual when there is risk from a partner and there is a right for them to know where they may be unaware they are at risk.

The Mayor: 4224_Usage of Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme.xlsx

Culture Spend

Susan Hall: How much have you spent on culture in the financial year 20/21?

The Mayor: London's culture and creative industries generate £58.4 billion a year and provide one in six jobs in the capital. The sector was disproportionately hit by COVID-19 lockdowns and restrictions, being the first to close and the last to reopen. Culture and the creative industriesdrive tourism and hospitality and will play avital economic and social role in accelerating the capital’s recovery from COVID-19.
My culture budget spend for 2020-21 was outlined in MQ2021/2089 https://www.london.gov.uk/questions/2021/2089. The culture budget spend for 2020-21 was £19.1 million.

Domestic Violence Protection Orders and Protection Notices

Unmesh Desai: Please advise how Domestic Violence Protection Orders and Protection Notices were issued by the Met in 2020 and 2021 by borough.

The Mayor: Please see attached the requested information. The supplied notes page should be read in conjunction with the data to aid in interpretation.

The Mayor: 4227_Domestic Violence Protection Orders and Protection Notices.xlsx

Air quality

Emma Best: What is your target for reducing PM2.5 in London over this term?

The Mayor: In my Environment Strategy I set out a target to achieve what, at the time, was the World Health Organization (WHO) recommended target of 10 micrograms per metre cubed for PM2.5 by 2030. This goes substantially beyond the current legal limits to deliver further improvements in public health.
I want to go further and meet the new WHO recommended guidelines as quickly as possible. This is part of my overall plan to ensure that our recovery from the pandemic is a green one, that will put us on the path to becoming a zero-pollution city.
I’m doing everything I can with the powers I have to achieve this. But all levels of government must work together if we are going to meet the new guidelines.
I'm lobbying the Government to use the opportunity provided by the Environment Bill to make real change. The Bill should include the interim WHO guideline of 10 micrograms per cubic metre as a legally binding target to be met by 2030, with a longer-term target of achieving the new WHO guideline – and also give city leaders the powers and funding we need to consign pollution to the history books.

Skills Gaps

Shaun Bailey: How are you identifying skills gaps in London?

The Mayor: As London’s Skills Advisory Panel (SAP), the Skills for Londoners Board is responsible for producing our annual Local Skills Report, setting out the skills landscape for London. The first of these - published in March 2021 – drew on several core indicators, including data from the Office for National Statistics, Working Futures, the Employer Skills Survey and the Business Register and Employment Survey.
As well as using traditional labour market statistics, this work is supported by Emsi online job postings data. This source provides detailed information on employer demand for skills in London; its timeliness and granularity will be key to tracking the evolution of the COVID-19 crisis and recovery.
Understanding of skills gaps is also informed by extensive engagement with businesses and employer representative bodies, including via the Skills for Londoners Business Partnership.
The Academies Programme, part of the London Recovery Board’s Good Work mission, will address skills gaps in sectors that are critical to London’s recovery, including creative, digital, green, health and social care, and hospitality.

Local newspapers and media in London (2)

Sem Moema: Is there scope within your ‘Enabling Resilient communities’ recovery mission to engage in dialogue with independent newspapers and press publications in London to ensure they are receiving the support they need to thrive in the capital after years of decline?

The Mayor: The London Recovery Programme was established to respond to the most pressing challenges facing London as the capital recovers from the pandemic. Each of the nine missions focuses on areas where specific action and partnership working can help overcome the worst impacts for Londoners.
The Building Strong Communities mission is committed to ensuring that by 2025, all Londoners will have access to a community hub ensuring they can volunteer, get support and build strong community networks. The mission’s priorities have been informed and shaped through the Festival of Ideas, which saw over 100 events held across the city, with over 4500 Londoners participating.
Whilst independent newspapers and press publications are an important part of supporting strong communities, they are not within the scope of this mission and there are no plans to widen the mission’s scope.

Air Pollution at Schools (1)

Leonie Cooper: Children in London are almost four times more likely to go to a school in an area where air pollution exceeds the World Health Organization limit than children in the rest of England. What further work are you doing with London boroughs on this to improve air quality around schools?

The Mayor: The bold policies I’ve introduced have helped to reduce the number of state schools located in areas with illegal levels of nitrogen dioxide by 97 per cent – from 455 in 2016 to just 14 in 2019. However, I am determined to do more to bring this number to zero as soon as possible.
My London Schools Pollution Helpdesk has been supporting boroughs to undertake air quality audits and implement audit recommendations since it launched in February this year. Furthermore, the Schools and Nurseries Air Quality Forum, a legacy of my air quality audit programmes, continues to facilitate the sharing of knowledge and best practice between schools and local authorities to improve air quality for children.
The ULEZ expansion later this month will be vital to achieving compliance with legal limits for air pollution and a key step towards meeting the more stringent health-driven World Health Organization guidelines for toxic air pollution.